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LAST JOURNAL 



THE RT. REV. GEORGE BURGESS. D.D., 

BISHOP OF MAINE, 
FROM DECEMBER 27, 1865, TO APRIL 20, 1866. 

tlHtt) an -Introduction 

BY 

THE RT. REV. ALFRED LEE, D.D., 

BISHOP OF DELAWARE. 



#!% 




BOSTON: 
E. P. DTJTTON AND COMPANY, 

(tffntrc!) ^ubltslurs. 

1866. 






LAST JOURNAL 



THE RT. REV. GEORGE BURGESS, D.D., 

BISHOP OF MAINE, 
FROM DECEMBER 27, 1865, TO APRIL 20, 1866. 

toitt) an 3ntxobnction 

BY 

THE RT. REV. ALFRED LEE, D.D., 

BISHOP OF DELAWARE. 




«• BOSTON: 

E. P. DUTTO^ AND COMPANY, 
Cijurci) SPublfsIjers. 

1866. 



599 5 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866, by 

E. P. Dutto* and Company, 

in the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the District of Massachusetts. 



riversidb, Cambridge: 
printed by h. 0. uouooton and company. 



CD 



PREFACE. 



The last journal of Bishop Burgess was not writ- 
ten for publication, but for the gratification of private 
friends. It is now given to the public because it is 
the last, and is earnestly called for by a wider circle 
of friends. To these reasons may be added another. 
When the disastrous fire, which occurred but a few 
hours after the Bishop landed in Port au Prince, de- 
prived our missionary of the hall in which he gathered 
his congregation, he said that when he returned home 
he would make it his business to see that a church 
building was provided as speedily as possible. But he 
was not permitted to return home, and the work which 
he laid down must be taken up by other hands. It 
has been proposed that the necessary buildings should 
be erected by the personal friends of the Bishop, as a 
memorial of his last work on earth. To these friends 
it is not possible to make direct application, but it is 
hoped that this record of the last few months of his 
life will make a more distinct appeal unnecessary. If 



IV PREFACE. 

each reader who calls himself a friend will, without 
delay, contribute his share towards the work, another 
year need not pass away without accomplishing the 
object which occupied almost his last thoughts on 
earth. 

It is proper to add, that if any profit is realized by 
the publication of the journal, it will be devoted to this 
object. 



V 

INTRODUCTION. 



The intelligence of the decease at sea of the Right 
Rev. George Burgess, Bishop of the Diocese of Maine, 
shocked and saddened the whole Protestant Episcopal 
Church in the United States. His brethren and 
friends, (and who that knew him was not his friend ?) 
were fondly anticipating his return from his voyage in 
improved health and with augmented energies. The 
prayers and good wishes of many Christian hearts fol- 
lowed this eminent minister of Christ when he em- 
barked for a Southern clime. It would be a superflu- 
ous attempt here to pen the eulogy of one so highly re- 
spected and so truly loved. Among the accomplished 
scholars, the finished writers, the fervent preachers, 
the wise and faithful Bishops of our Church, he stood 
in the foremost rank. As a Christian man and an 
overseer of the flock he commended himself to the 
fullest confidence, shed lustre on his own communion, 
and adorned the doctrine of God his Saviour. 

The loss of such a man under any circumstances 
would awaken heart-felt sorrow, and leave a painful 
void, not only in his Diocese, but throughout his whole 
household of faith. The circumstances attendant upon 



VI INTRODUCTION. 

his removal have been such as greatly to enhance its 
mournful interest. He passed away in the meridian of 
his vigor and usefulness. He expired at a distance 
irom his Diocese and home. He was taken in the 
midst of active duties, the ink being scarce dry upon 
the sheet on which he had inscribed his last official 
acts, when the hand dropped motionless and the eye 
closed. And while, as a Diocesan Bishop his field of 
labor was wholly Domestic, he closed his course as a 
Foreign Missionary. Warned by his impaired health 
of the necessity of change of climate and relaxation, he 
sought to combine these objects with the advancement 
of the great work to which his life was devoted. The 
need was urgent for an Episcopal visit and for the 
survey of the missionary field in the Republic of Haiti 
and also in Mexico. Bishop Burgess, instead of seek- 
ing to restore his impaired health by visiting the Old 
World, so full of interest to a man of his well-stored 
mind and cultivated taste, gladly embraced the oppor- 
tunity of exploring the openings presented for evangelic 
enterprise in our tropical regions, and of encouraging 
and confirming the little flock of our communion that 
had been already gathered in Haiti. 

Those who love to recognize the direction of Him 
who is Head over all things to the Church, will not 
doubt that His servant was led to those shores by His 
unseen hand. And if He have designs of great mercy 
for the people of that large and beautiful island, 
through the agency of our Church, is it not in accord- 
ance with His ways of wisdom and grace that the 
memory of one so highly loved and honored should 
be ever associated with the inception of the work ? Is 



INTRODUCTION. Vll 

it a new thing in His Providence that missionary 
ground should be thus claimed and consecrated ? The 
standard-bearer falls, but not before the colors are 
unfurled and the trumpet sounded. Moses looks over 
the length and breadth of the Promised Land, and al- 
though he expire on the summit of Nebo, yet was the 
survey taken by his dying eye as much a part of the 
divine plan as the victories of Joshua. If the lamented 
visitor could have returned to his brethren he would 
have pleaded earnestly and effectively for the evangeli- 
zation of Haiti. But how often is the death of God's 
servant more eloquent than his life ! 

The establishment of ihe gospel in that magnificent 
island, whose history from the time of Columbus is of 
such deep and tragic interest, seems now in the provi- 
dence of God to be devolved upon our branch of the 
Christian Church. The nominal religion is the Roman 
Catholic, and this unscriptural system there exists in a 
debased shape, almost powerless for good, little better 
than a bondage of superstition and an agency of extor- 
tion. Although it has been for so long a period supreme, 
it has scarce done any thing to enlighten the ignorance, 
purify the morals, or elevate the social condition of the 
people. Dark and cruel heathen usages still linger, 
witchcraft is a terror, and cannibal orgies were not very 
long since brought to light and punished by the Govern- 
ment. Rome has had full scope to do what she would ; 
has been weighed in the balance and found wanting. 
The English Wesleyans have made commendable efforts 
to introduce the gospel since 1817, and not without a 
measure of success. Several thousands, it is estimated, 
have through their efforts been brought to a purer 



Vlll INTRODUCTION. 

faith. But they have not succeeded in raising up a 
native ministry ; the attention of the Society is now 
directed to other fields, many of their missionaries 
have been withdrawn, and their converts are largely 
looking to us to care for their souls and prosecute the 
work which has been begun. Intelligent and pious 
men are desirous to receive at our hands the ministerial 
commission, and congregations invite us to take them 
under our charge. 

The Protestant Episcopal Mission in Haiti was 
commenced by the Rev. J. Theodore Holly, pastor of 
a colony of one hundred and eleven souls who sailed 
from New Haven, Ct., Mfy 1st, 1861. The little 
band did not escape the hardships and mortality almost 
inseparable from colonial enterprises. Insufficiently 
accommodated upon their arrival, and exposed without 
proper shelter to a tropical climate, they lost the first 
year one third of their number. Mr. Holly, although 
afflicted with personal illness and domestic bereavement, 
persevered with signal courage and faith. He acted as 
the pastor of the little suffering flock, and supported 
himself and his family in part by the labor of his own 
hands. Animated by an irrepressible zeal for the 
spread of the gospel in Haiti, he commenced the w r ork 
of an evangelist in the city of Port au Prince, and 
made a highly favorable impression upon the authori- 
ties and intelligent residents. On Whitsunday, May 
15th, 1863, the Church of the Holy Trinity, Port 
au Prince, was organized, and in July following was 
received by the Right Rev. T. C. Brownell, Presiding 
Bishop, under his Episcopal government. The under- 
signed, being commissioned by Bishop BroWnell to 



INTRODUCTION. IX 

perform Episcopal acts at Port an Prince and elsewhere 
in Haiti, visited the island in November, 1863, at which 
time he confirmed twenty-six persons in the upper room 
occupied by Mr. Holly on the Lord's day. A report 
of this visit was made to the American Church Mis- 
sionary Society, by which Mr. Holly was then sus- 
tained, expressing a favorable opinion of his work and 
of the opening there presented, and especially urging 
that a church edifice and a house for the residence of 
the Missionary and the accommodation of a school, 
should be sent out from this country wilh as little de- 
lay as possible. In 1865 the Mission was transferred 
by the American Church Missionary Society to the 
Board of Missions of the Protestant Episcopal Church, 
and at the request of the Foreign Committee Bishop 
Burgess consented to inspect the Mission during the last 
winter. A report of his official acts has been made 
public. Besides confirming nineteen persons, he laid 
the foundation of a native Protestant Episcopal Min- 
istry by ordaining two competent persons, both of whom 
are already engaged as Missionaries of the Foreign 
Committee, and by receiving testimonials from six more 
applicants for Holy Orders. After having performed 
these labors of love, and preached his last sermon at 
Port au Prince, the lamented Bishop embarked for 
his distant home, leaving behind him a deep impression 
of his Christian zeal, practical wisdom, and devoted- 
ness. But although he knew it not, he was much 
nearer to a heavenly than to an earthly home. On 
the day after his embarkation, as the little coasting 
vessel was lying becalmed on the glassy sea, he fell 
asleep. On the open deck he gently sank into the 



X INTRODUCTION. 

long deep slumber — the " blessed sleep, from which 
none ever wakes to weep " — he fell asleep in Jesus. 

And now the autographic record of the closing days 
and final toils of his holy life is given to the Church of 
which he was so attached a member and honored a 
Bishop. May the object to which he gave his latest 
thoughts and prayers enlist the sympathy and liberality 
of those who esteemed him very highly in love, both 
for his own and for his work's sake. 

ALFRED LEE. 

September 11, 1866. 



JOURNAL 



Dec. 27, 1865. — After several mild snows and rains, 
as the year was drawing towards its close, a westerly 
wind scattered the clouds, and gave us a gentle en- 
trance on our voyage. The friends who attended us 
to the vessel, and lingered on board, saw gladly the 
bright omens towards the setting sun. How various a 
scene, and sometimes how touching, is the pier from 
which a steamer, bound for a foreign port, swings her- 
self off, true almost to the minute ! There stands a 
family group in mourning ; all serious, the younger in 
tears : how easy to guess the history of their parting ! 
There are young men and women who have come 
down to give a cordial farewell to some companion 
whom they almost envy the delight of travel. The mer- 
cantile gentlemen, well-trimmed, intelligent, prompt, 
mount to the deck as if they took their places in the 
omnibus. The choked train of vehicles on the pier, 
with the sometimes swearing drivers, has been re- 
leased. The last policeman has finished his work 
about the vessel, whatever it was. The plank is drawn 
ashore ; the great mass moves ; the voyage is begun. 
As she wheels around, and leaves behind her all those 
friendly faces, and hats are lifted, and white handker- 
chiefs are waved as long as the eye can discern them, 



12 JOURNAL. 

it is one of those scenes which the merest stranger 
would love to retain in memory. 

The departing and arriving steamers cross each 
other's way with a whistle of proud and kind salute. 
A few moments have carried us beyond the sight of 
the familiar towers, steeples, and lines of ships. Half 
an hour more bears us beyond the suburban houses on 
the shore, the hospitals, the fortresses ; and now we 
pass that long sandy line with its termination of white 
waves, and we are out, with the boundless sea on one 
side, and on the other the receding shores, over which, 
as evening closes in, a light-house now and then glit- 
ters. It is a moonlight night, neither cold as winter 
might claim, nor rough beyond the mildest usage of 
ocean ; and all this transient household of various 
bloods, who sleep to-night within these floating walls, 
lie down with little discomfort, though mostly satisfied 
with the attitude of repose. I write with ease till a 
late hour. 

Dec. 28. — So passed the first night ; and the second 
day bore us easily upon a sea that still tossed but 
gently. The sky was a little overcast ; a little rain 
fell ; but those who were not sick could walk the deck 
pretty freely ; and the air was mild : no need of gloves 
for warmth. We were far out of sight of the shore ; 
and we saw no vessel. The ladies of the party were 
generally absent from the table, but without great 
suffering. The wind drew towards the west ; and the 
western sky, at sunset, was red with the hues of prom- 
ise. " Glory to thee, my God ! this night." 

People in the same ship become easily acquainted. 
The universal need of companionship makes itself felt ; 



JOURNAL. 



13 



and, when the ordinary restraints are lifted for a time, 
something appears of the sentiment which " makes the 
w T hole world kin." Conversation which might at other 
times be little courted is then agreeable ; and charac- 
ters which would otherwise have been never appre- 
ciated, become objects of real regard. 

Dec. 29. — The second night carried us quietly 
beyond Cape Hatteras ; and, at noon on the following 
day, it appeared that more than five hundred miles had 
been accomplished. A little rain would drive us to 
shelter ; and then, again, we could sit and walk, and 
see the low waves, with their white crests, rise and 
fall around us as far as the horizon. Other vessels 
passed us, from Wilmington, perhaps, or Charleston. 
I delivered letters of introduction to two passengers, 
and read a large part of a book on u Adam and the 
Adamite," lent me by an English gentleman from 
Barbadoes. Between sleep and the four meals, a little 
conversation, a little reading and writing, and the 
sources of private meditation, the day and the night 
glide on easily, if not rapidly, and mingle themselves 
with eternity. 

Dec. 30. — The fourth day brought us to warmer 
skies, and to seas about as calm as a lake, but traversed 
by no visible bark but ours. We saw the little nautilus 
sail ; we passed among the fleets of leaping porpoises ; 
we noticed the tracks of the flying-fishes ; we admired 
the white pinions of the sea-gull, which had followed us 
all the way ; and we exulted in the glory of the 
tropical clouds ranged like white Alpine battlements 
all around the horizon, or attending the magnificent 
sunset. Down plunged the sun indeed in haste beneath 



14 JOURNAL. 

the waters ; but the soft, rich, green metallic hues 
which were left along his path in the west were such 
as were never quite known at the north. 

I became acquainted on that day with a gallant 
general of the United States army ; and with a lady 
who was my townswoman, and nearly allied by mar- 
riage to a family to which my family was similarly 
allied. 

Bee. 31. — The next day was the Lord's Day, and 
both the last day of the year and, in effect, of our voy- 
age, which closed a little after midnight. We had 
passed in the forenoon close along the Florida Reef, 
with the long, low shore, and occasionally a tall beacon 
in sight. A fine ship, lately wrecked, lay near us on 
her beam-ends, stripped and worthless. We saw sev- 
eral steamers, and seemed to be on a highway of the 
seas. Although ill prepared for so much exertion of 
the vocal organs, still, when I found that some were 
expecting from me a service, I could not but offer one, 
brief and imperfect ; but it may have its blessing. In 
the afternoon, we ran at once from the fair green 
waters that skirt the coast and hide the shoals, into the 
deep and very beautiful depth of the Gulf Stream. 
The sea became rougher, and the western sky was hid- 
den at sunset ; but a glorious moonlight filled the night 
and ended the year. 

Jan. 1. — At a quarter past one, on the morning 
of the first of January, the whistle of the steamer bade 
her strong arms rest, and announced the land, " the 
harbor, the Havana." There she lay quietly till the 
morning light, when she steamed in between the strong 
castle of the Morro, on the left, and a work of some 



JOURNAL. 15 

strength on the right. The passage is narrow : and the 
harbor deep, long, but not otherwise very spacious. It 
was pretty well thronged with vessels of different na- 
tions ; but the red and yellow of Spain and of Cuba 
much predominated. The steamers are obliged to 
anchor at a distance from the pier, so that they have 
still to land their passengers by small boats. 

But once landed, without unusual bustle or con- 
fusion, and having submitted to the Custom-House ex- 
amination, and parted from several friends of the voy- 
age, we have leisure to look around on the strangely 
foreign scene. For, at first sight, Havana is not only 
Spanish, but Moorish, Oriental, Chinese, American : 
all races and all hues mingled in its population, and 
crowding each other in its narrow streets. The cooley 
helped to land our baggage ; the Chinaman was there, 
with his peculiar look of old acquaintance : negroes of 
every degree of blackness ; mulattoes with that black- 
ness softened down to every degree ; the dark olive of 
the tropics, the light hair of the North, — all not only 
meet us, but are thrown together as if in one crowd, 
to the eye of the stranger. 

We arrive at our hotel. The broad, high passage 
at the entrance leads into the court or quadrangle ; and 
we ascend, on the right, a staircase equivalent to two 
stories of most well-built houses. The whole front is 
occupied with a handsome drawing-room ; the rear, 
with a pleasant parlor : and a gallery connected with 
these goes around the court, and opens on each side 
into the rooms of the guests. From this gallery we 
look down into the court below, where, as well as 
under the adjoining arches which uphold the chambers, 



16 JOURNAL*, 

the tables are spread for each group of guests, all thus 
having their repasts in the open air. Above, a ceiling 
of windows were all opened to the sky. The house, 
once the residence of a noble Spanish family who own 
it, continually suggests thoughts of a palace, a fortress, 
or a prison. The windows, like all others here, are 
heavily grated ; the shutters and doors are massy and 
thick ; brick or stone pillars sustain the galleries ; 
marble or brick pavements form the floors ; the flat 
roofs are tiled ; and on one of these, for the time, a room 
was assigned to us, where the welcome breeze comes 
from the sea above the houses of the city. We look 
down upon a wilderness of ragged battlements and 
picturesque walls, every house being painted with some 
bright color, — blue, yellow, white, green, red, — all 
that loves the sunshine. 

I was obliged to take a boat, and return to the 
steamer for a very precious Bible which I had left be- 
hind ; and, after this, contented myself with resting 
from the voyage. After dinner, which is after dark, 
the gentlemen and ladies are accustomed to ride for 
pleasure, which, in the present moonlight, is more 
endurable. This day was excessively warm, even for 
Havana ; the mercury being at 85° in the shade. 

Jan. 2. — On the following day, in the forenoon, we 
rode, under equal heat, through some of the principal 
streets and squares, to the fortress by the sea, opposite 
the Morro Castle ; then along the parks, such as they 
are, and to the country-seat of the Captain-General, not 
otherwise a spot of much note except for the fine 
avenue of palms and pines, the orange-trees, the cac- 
tuses, and other rich plants developed to their utmost 



JOURNAL. 17 

glory in his gardens. I saw one negro workman there, 
at work in fetters. The streets of Havana are swept 
every night ; and thus the city is far cleaner and more 
fragrant than New York. Families live within their 
own barred walls ; people of gentility walk very little ; 
the ladies wear veils, not bonnets. Many of the 
laboring men have upon them only the thinnest and 
scantiest attire ; and occasionally a negro child, in the 
arms of its parent, has none. The shops and ware- 
houses, though not very spacious, are rich with costly 
goods. Horses, asses, mules, of every capacity of 
endurance, all lean, scraggy, and strong, with every 
sort of strange pack-saddle and burden, go rapidly 
through the narrow streets, where two can pass each 
other, leaving the merest sidewalk on each side for a 
single passenger. But great civility between all classes 
appears to prevail, so that there is little jostling or 
angry assertion of street right. The favorite, peculiar 
carriage is the volante ; in which the horse, ridden by 
a negro, drags a chair at a distance of some six to ten 
feet behind him : the person or persons inside, one or 
three, lounging as in a cradle. There are crowds of 
these and other light carriages, but apparently no 
coaches. 

The extreme heat continued. The hills and fields 
of the country wore the freshest green ; and the south- 
erly winds, as far as they went, were refreshing. 

Jan. 3. — On our third day in Havana, we repaired, 
in the forenoon, to the Cathedral ; but its doors were 
locked : a few persons were kneeling at an adjoining 
shrine. The mass is performed early, in the choir ; 
but in the afternoon, at three, the Canons have their 



18 JOURNAL. 

second service, for greater coolness, in the nave : this 
we attended. About twenty ecclesiastics took part in 
the chanting and reading ; and there were only two or 
three other persons there. All, however, though very 
monotonous, and quite enough to make the suggestion 
of intoning our English services an abomination, was 
still conducted with entire decorum, gravity, and dig- 
nity. The Cathedral, built of the yellow stone which 
becomes rough but not ugly with age, is not of ira~ 
mense extent; but it is stately and beautiful within, 
and kept in superb order, so unlike most of the Romish 
churches in all lands. It is also bright and cheerful ; 
and, in all its arrangements, I saw remarkably little 
that was offensive. The pictures, as works of art, are 
worthy of the structure. When the Canons had re- 
tired, one of them approached us, and, in imperfect 
French, offered to show us the spot where the ashes of 
Christopher Columbus lie. It is within the chancel ; 
and is marked by a modest monument, bearing the 
effigy of the great discoverer. 

The endowments of the Spanish Church have been 
largely appropriated by the State, which at least ad- 
ministers them, and out of them pays the ecclesiastics. 
These are not seen in any great numbers in the streets 
of Havana ; and the cloisters furnish no trains of monks 
or nuns to the crowd. I have not even seen the hid- 
eous costume of the Sister of Charity, as she spreads 
out her stiff wings and banners in our cities. No pub- 
lic Protestant service is tolerated ; but the Bible is 
freely sold and given away. The people must be in 
great religious ignorance : and there is, if we may trust 
general report, much corruption of morals ; but it does 



JOURNAL. 19 

not very often assume the type of intemperance in 
drinking. A taste and a necessity for cool and refresh- 
ing drinks, which are various and abundant, seems to 
supersede the desire for more fiery gratification. 

The great heat of the last few days was succeeded 
by gathering clouds and a wind from the north ; and, 
in the evening, there was almost a tempest of rain, 
while the wind rushed fiercely through the open spaces 
of the house. We had been transferred, happily, from 
the roof to one of the rooms opening upon the gallery. 

In the night we were aroused by sounds as if several 
strong men were tugging at our locks and bars ; and 
one of the doors at length flew open. It was " but the 
wind ; " but it was no small exertion to keep it out by 
barricading, with heavy trunks, both the passages by 
which it could enter. 

Jan. 4. — On the next morning, it was said that a 
vessel was on shore off the Castle. As we stood upon 
the Custom-House pier, and looked towards the en- 
trance of the harbor, facing the strong, cool north 
wind, the dash of the distant breakers was wildly beau- 
tiful. The air was quite changed ; moderate, even cool, 
though only in comparison ; for it was still pleasant to 
do every thing with open windows and in the air. 

The matters of passports, arrangements for money 
and for the transmission of letters, and even the de- 
termination of the route itself, liable to be changed by 
any intelligence, are among the wearinesses of the 
traveller, who would gladly be wafted on his way with- 
out solicitude, becoming often a little too self-indulgent. 
It is well for him to be reminded that he is in the world, 
where all who live must labor ; and where care mounts 
the ship and sits behind the horseman. 



20 JOURNAL. 

A man with a strong, boisterous, but glorious voice, 
somewhere in the neighborhood of the hotel, amused 
himself, late in the evening, with singing patriotic or 
other songs. Such a power of voice, it seemed, I never 
had heard ; and 1 was sorry when the cooler weather, 
which the Cubans find oppressive, put him to silence. 
As to the weather at night, there being no glass in the 
windows, you must choose, when it is cool, between 
shutters with complete darkness, and the winds, how- 
ever tempestuous or chilling. 

Jan. 5. — Havana is chiefly a great commercial city, 
with two hundred thousand inhabitants, the pride and 
treasure of Spain. Its harbor extends, bending a little, 
perhaps two miles back from the Morro Castle ; and, 
beginning at its upper end, and following it down- 
wards, we see the sources of this insular wealth. 
Heavy and handsome piers stretch along the water ; 
and there are some broad paved esplanades which look 
down upon the discharging vessels. There are the 
supplies of sugar and coffee from the country ; the 
oranges, the bananas, the tobacco ; the boards for 
sugar-boxes, all prepared in the United States, and 
sent out ; the sponges, even, in large heaps. As you 
proceed, small oxen, harnessed without yokes, but with 
the pressure of the board upon their foreheads, are 
reposing ; and tough, well-fed, but lean horses and 
asses bear on each side a balanced burden, and on their 
backs a vast saddle, to be filled perhaps by a rough 
laborer, perhaps by a scarecrow. These are depositing 
daily within the warehouses, or beside the ship or 
steamer, that which the wealth of the world is ready 
to buy. These ships and steamers, except when 



JOURNAL. 21 

actually discharging, or, I suppose, loading, lie off from 
the shore, and form a scattered fleet of noble bearing. 
On the last day but one of our visit, a French vessel 
was lying there, with two regiments, it was said, of 
reinforcements for Vera Cruz. 

Detained by the delay of the steamer to arrive, in 
which on her further voyage we were to embark, we 
saw the strange usage of the negro population on their 
peculiar holiday, Epiphany, — the day of the Manifesta- 
tion of Christ to the Gentiles, of whom they were. It 
would be a glorious and most significant spectacle, were 
they found in all the churches, lifting up their songs 
of gratitude for the light which has reached them from 
afar. But it is employed as an occasion rather of 
strange, giddy, sometimes servile and sometimes bar- 
barian, festivity. The slaves are all let loose for the 
day. Bands of them go about the streets in all kinds 
of fantastic attire, and accoutred with every odd im- 
plement of peace or war. They unfurl banners ; they 
wield swords in the dance ; they drum with their hands 
and with sticks on hideous African drums ; they clothe 
themselves in the attire, I suppose, of Fetish men, hid- 
ing their natural face and form, and covering them- 
selves with skins, feathers, gay flow r ers : others make 
themselves ludicrous by their excessive shabbiness. 
And thus they place themselves under the balconies, 
and before respectable people, and solicit small gifts, 
which, when collected, are dedicated, it is said, first to 
the relief of their suffering fellows, and then to a gay 
ball and supper on this night. Meanwhile, a more 
elevated class of the negro girls have spent their earn- 
ings, or the presents which have been made them, in 



22 JOURNAL. 

the purchase of gay, floating dresses, scarlet and crim- 
son shawls, and all that is brilliant in dress ; and thus 
trail the streets on this one day of triumph. Some of 
them were graceful and handsome, and one or two 
were queenly ; the black skin at a little distance con- 
trasting better than white with the light muslin. The 
only gloves I have seen in Havana were a pair of 
white kid on one of these women. The shops were 
generally shut ; and no one was very solicitous to ex- 
tend his walk till the afternoon brought a comparative 
quietness ; and then the Park of Isabel and the vicinity 
was exceedingly pleasant. 

Again we were detained till after a Sunday, the day 
succeeding the Epiphany. The promise, where two or 
three are gathered in the name of Jesus, was affection- 
ately claimed through the services of His Church in 
private : public Protestant service in Havana there is 
none. The streets on Sunday are more quiet than 
throughout the week : trade is not much invited, but 
is not refused. Many tradesmen live at their places of 
business, or have their warehouses in their dwellings. 
But a bull-fight was advertised for the evening. I was 
told that very few white people in Havana go to church 
at all ; hardly any men. We went to the Cathedral in 
the afternoon, to see a procession which was advertised. 
It was a very unimposing exhibition, though not so 
shabby as I have seen them at Rome. I was offered a 
candle, and was glad to retreat behind a door, as the 
canopied hostia passed by. Oh, who can forbear lifting 
to God the longing prayer, that, on this great irreligious 
seat of commerce and opulence, the light of God may 
arise ; so that its temples may be His in all purity and 



JOURNAL. 23 

truth, and that the blessings which Spain repulsed at 
the Reformation may still be her best wealth ! 

Jan. 8. — The steamer of the English line from 
Vera Cruz to St. Thomas, in which we were to em- 
bark, arrived on Sunday ; and on Monday morning 
we were duly on board at her anchorage. Before 
noon she steamed down the harbor, passed all the fleet 
of ships, passed the solid piers and full warehouses, 
passed the strong lines of the fortification on either side, 
passed close under the Morro Castle, town, light-house, 
and rock, turned to the right, and was in a moment on 
the sea. The sea was a little rugged ; but through 
most of the day it was delightful to sit upon the deck, 
and inhale the cool air, even from ahead. Occasionally 
a little shower or too damp a spray would compel us 
to retire for a season. We ran along the northern 
coast of Cuba, in sight of land, till dark : and, toward 
evening, the slightly varied outline of the previous 
shore was succeeded by that remarkable flat between 
two striking summits, known as the " Pan of Matan- 
zas." The city of Matanzas lies around a point east- 
ward of this. As we proceeded, the wind and the sea 
grew higher, and the night was rather rough. The 
steamer, remarkably straight and steadfast, built of 
iron, wavered not and was but little affected, except 
by the occasional thumps which struck her till she 
trembled. My mattress was wet from the deck ; and 
I slept on the lounge. 

Jan. 9. — Through the early part of the night, sleep 
was naturally broken by some restlessness ; but the 
latter part was passed in deep sleep. Morning brought 
closed ports on our side : spray washing over the deck, 



24 JOURNAL. 

strong winds ahead, and altogether one of those days 
on which (though they be neither very alarming nor 
intolerably' uncomfortable, yet) every one longs for a 
favorable change. In the afternoon and evening the 
sea did considerably subside ; and the stars shone down 
upon the waters when I last went upon deck. We 
passed several vessels at a distance, on their way to 
Cuba : one of them a Spanish steamer. Almost all 
the crew of our vessel we're Africans ; with a some- 
what peculiar type of countenance, by no means in- 
dicating either stupidity or malignity. 

Jan. 10. — I enjoyed on the following night, when 
the sea, somewhat allayed, rocked me to sleep, a pro- 
founder repose than for many a week before. When 
I came out in the morning, we were at a narrow part 
of the Bahama Channel, some twenty miles across. 
On the left was a tall white light-house, on one of the 
small Bahama keys ; on the right, the Cuban shore 
was distinctly in sight. Through the whole day I 
could walk the deck, or sit there ; but the wind was 
cool, and a great-coat was welcome. The four meals 
break up the day ; and I read a considerable part of 
Mill's " Examination of Hamilton's Philosophy " ; and 
only wished I had more materials for other literary 
occupation; 

Jan. 11. — A pleasant night and day succeeded, 
during which we finally left the eastern point of 
Cuba, crossed the Channel, and came in sight of the 
Haytien hills. Though the weather was moderate, 
yet it had no tropical features. One could sit on the 
deck with comfort, but there was no occasion for sum- 
mer clothing. The hours glided away, idly perhaps, 



JOURNAL. 25 

though not so with me, who was reading rather hard, 
but not uncomfortably. Amongst the passengers, I 
became acquainted with one, from the State of New 
York, who felt himself to be quite low with consump- 
tion. He had lost by it his father and six brothers and 
sisters, being himself the last left to his mother, whom 
it was his great desire to see again. If he found him- 
self able to stay through the winter, he would return 
in the spring : if not, he would take the first steamer 
homeward. He had been an officer in our volunteer 
army ; and spoke of himself with calmness and even 
cheerfulness, and was not ignorant where he must look 
for hope and peace. I was glad to talk with him, as 
he was necessarily lonely and exposed to many incon- 
veniences. 

An unpleasant an'd possibly fatal accident occurred 
in the succeeding night to one of the engineers. Lean- 
ing over the machinery, he allowed his head to come 
between two iron beams, one or both in motion, which 
compressed his skull above his ears, so that the slight- 
est additional pressure would have been destruction. 
It was not quite certain, in the judgment of the sur- 
geon, how far the skull was injured ; but he feared 
much from the secondary consequences of such wounds. 
The man was sensible and sleepless. 

Jan. 12. — All the next day we skirted the north- 
ern coast of the great island of St. Domingo, at a dis- 
tance of eight or ten miles. It is very bold and grand, 
one range of picturesque mountains sweeping off be- 
hind another, and some of them very high, many thou- 
sands of feet, and broken by singular clefts. About 
noon we were abreast of the fine headland which 



26 JOURNAL. 

makes the northern extremity of the island, Cape Isa- 
bella ; and near its fort is the town of Port au Platte. 
Still the shore stretched onward till morning. The 
air was becoming warmer. 

Jan. 13. — The next day was warmer yet, but not 
oppressive. We left St. Domingo behind us, and 
crossed the Mona Channel, till, in the afternoon, we 
were in sight of Porto Rico. We thought it best to 
have some letters ready for home, as so many vessels 
leave that island for the United States, and we were 
to touch at St. Juan. The shore, so far as we could 
get glimpses of it from a distance before dark, was 
less striking than that of St. Domingo; but it is a 
rich island, and of great value to Spain, with its sugar 
and molasses. The former goes chiefly to Europe ; the 
latter to the United States. 

Jan. 14. — In the night the steamer stood still off 
the harbor of St. Juan in Porto Rico, and at daylight 
went in and delivered the mail. Few more beautiful 
scenes than this fine haven presents can be seen even 
in the West Indian seas. After entering the narrow 
passage, on one side of which frowns the little fortress, 
the very handsome town extends itself on the left with 
walls on the water's edge, and no aspect of poverty or 
decay in any part, as it ascends the hill. The harbor 
stretches up, like that of Havana, among green fields ; 
but on the right as you enter, are magnificent ranges 
of hills, range behind range, broken precipitously, but 
all rich with vegetation, and suggesting thoughts of 
volcanic ruptures, while still beyond these are loftier 
mountains. The familiar name of Bangor on the stern 
of a vessel which we passed made us hope that our 



JOURNAL. 27 

letters might even so reach home, if not sooner. Leav- 
ing this splendid scene, we skirted the shore of Porto 
Rico still eastward, then saw a crowd of beautiful 
islands of every outline and size, — now a single, low 
round hill, now a long mountain, now a mere fantastic 
rock, till, at a distance, the lofty height of St. Thomas 
arose in our front. But the island is mostly unculti- 
vated, and the population is nearly confined to the 
town, which is on the south side. As you at length 
approach it, clearing the smaller islets, you see on the 
lower part of a vast green hill-side three rises of bright 
houses, with yellow walls and red roofs and verandas ; 
and on the water many ships and steamers. As it was 
Sunday, everything was in its best attire ; and even 
the negroes, who fought over our baggage, were well 
clothed. The hotels, happily for us, reached almost to 
the shore ; and the neighboring streets were short and 
narrow, for there were no carriages ; and we applied at 
four hotels without succeeding in our application for 
lodgings. At length we obtained a room, and quiet, 
comfortable accommodations in a private boarding- 
house. It was an unspeakable satisfaction to go in the 
evening to the English Church, of which the Rev. Mr. 
Roach is the minister. The congregation was large, 
and was chiefly made up of people of color. An ex- 
cellent and evangelical sermon was preached ; the Ser- 
vice was well read ; the singing was pleasant and gen- 
eral ; and after service I introduced myself to the 
Rector, and stepped over to his house. We went to 
bed this night tired, but refreshed and rejoicing. 

Jan. 15. — The sun rose, warm and cheerful ; but 
very soon, as in the night before, clouds came down 



28 JOURNAL. 

from the mountain, and brought a succession of sudden 
and heavy showers, which were not long interrupted 
throughout the day. We were unable to go out till 
towards evening, when we took a short walk, but saw 
little of the town. The streets are so narrow, and so 
muddy in rainy weather, that it would be impossible 
to explore with any satisfaction. We could see little 
more than a few pleasant houses on the heights ; the 
stir of the noisy, good-natured blacks ; their various 
modes of carrying burdens — not generally very heavy ; 
occasional horsemen, few in number ; and no carriage, 
though there are a few carts and genteeler vehicles. 
Mr. Roach called in the evening, and came on horse- 
back, though his house was at no great distance. 

Jan. 16. — Beautiful weather succeeded on the next 
day ; and we saw St. Thomas in much of its best 
beauty. The main street is lined with long, deep 
warehouses, extending to the water side. The market 
is a busy scene ; and so are the few piers ; but the 
vessels lie off at their anchorage. We visited the 
Danish Fort, which is also the prison ; and from the 
weak battlements had a fine view of the little bay and 
its fleet of ships and steamers. 

Arm of the Lord, why lingerest thou so long ? 
The ocean isles await thee with a song. 

The steamer from England came in ; bringing, with 
other passengers, a part of the commission sent out to 
inquire into the Jamaica insurrection and its suppres- 
sion. We dined with the Rector of the Parish, and 
passed a pleasant evening. 

Jan. 17. — We rose early, expecting to cross to St. 
Croix, as the steamer was advertised for eight o'clock ; 



JOURNAL. 29 

but on going down to the harbor, found that the hour 
had been suddenly changed, and she had gone at seven. 

Thus detained, we found ourselves able to turn into 
the hotel at which we had first made application in 
vain. I called again on our friend the Rector, and 
walked with him the whole length of the town to the 
Cemetery. Graves are kept open, because in this 
climate the burial must usually follow the death within 
the day. Sixty persons were buried, in the prevalence 
of the cholera, by Mr. Roach one Sunday afternoon 
together, some of whom had been at church in the 
morning. The town is not considered unhealthy ; but 
diseases are often rapid, and many deaths occur in the 
shipping. In the streets the number of blacks greatly 
exceeds that of the white people : the police, I believe, 
is rigid, just, and uniform. 

Jan. 18. — There is at St. Thomas a very respect- 
able Atheneum, with the chief papers and magazines 
from different countries, and with a large and valuable 
collection of books. Such use of these privileges as 
could be suitable for strangers was secured to us by the 
kindness of a citizen. Santa Anna lives on the hill- 
side, in a house not externally splendid, but richly 
furnished ; and loads the community with the abomina- 
tion of his corrupt example. St. Thomas has a popu- 
lation which must be nourished almost entirely from 
abroad : the island yields very little. It is a free port ; 
and certain articles are thus sold at low prices, while 
the general rate of living is high. 

Jan. 19. — The custom of living is to take, on rising, 
a cup of coffee, but not to breakfast till ten or eleven, — 
much work being first done. Dinner is deferred till five 



30 JOURNAL. 

or six ; and these two meals, which are almost equally 
substantial, are the allowance of the day. Much time 
is thus left for industry, and I should suppose it not 
idly employed. Certainly, if the promiscuous and in- 
cessant babble of thousands of tongues in the free open 
air be any indication that the blacks are not asleep, in- 
dustry of some sort is not wanting. One city clock 
gives the time ; and a gun from the garrison at five in 
the morning and another at eight in the evening, seem 
to be regarded by the negroes as the regulators of their 
day. The Lutheran is the established religion. The 
clergyman of the English Church is sustained by the 
English government, like the chaplains in European 
cities, to the extent of half his salary. The Moravians 
have been established here more than a century : they 
have two little meetings outside of the town, as well as 
one within, and are held in universal confidence. No 
Baptist, Methodist, or other sectarian worship is by law 
allowed. 

Jan. 20. — At length we undertook the little voyage 
of forty or fifty miles, right through the open sea to 
St. Croix. The night had been windy and rainy; and 
though the sky was bright, the little steamer, once out 
at sea, so heaved and tossed that it was impossible to 
remain on deck. It was, however, but three or four 
hours, and we found ourselves, early in the afternoon, 
in the harbor of St. Croix. The Custom-House (St. 
Thomas, though Danish, being a free port) required a 
moment ; and we were soon settled comfortably at the 
Hotel, where we found several American gentlemen, 
and one lady, somewhat an invalid. Mr. Allman, the 
Rector of the church, soon after called ; and we walked 



JOURNAL. 31 

out together, but were compelled by a sudden shower 
to take shelter. Then we drove a little way out of the 
town, and saw something of the character of the place 
and of the neighboring country. It was peculiarly the 
market-day, substituted for the old Sunday markets ; 
and a cheerful sight were the crowds of black people 
from the country, with their little carts, called " eman- 
cipation carts," in which they bring in their produce 
and ride home over the smooth roads. We met and 
passed many of them as we drove through a sugar 
estate near the town. The cane grows to a great 
height, the upper part being excellent food for the 
animals, while the stalks, after the extraction of the 
juice, are still of use, as fuel. There were no fences 
or walls ; but the cattle were pastured together, under 
the eye of a guard. Nothing could be more delightful 
than the ride on the sea-shore, with the cool breeze, 
while the cocoa-nut trees, with their fruit ; the cactuses 
in full growth and bloom ; the oleanders — large, beau- 
tiful trees — and others, natives of the tropics, which 
I could not name, bordered the way. The town was 
once more imposing than now, as many of the houses 
have a decayed look ; but there are public buildings of 
much extent and dignity, especially the Government- 
House : the churches are all large and respectable in 
aspect : and the first impression of the town is one of 
great pleasantness, even apart from its delightful climate 
and fine position on the sea. 

Jan. 21. — On Sunday, the Danish custom and 
regulations being founded on the Lutheran view of the 
Lord's Day, shops may be open at early and at quite 
late hours, but are closed in the intervals. The sound 



32 JOURNAL. 

of the billiard balls was heard in the hotel all day 
long. At the English or Episcopal Church, — for in- 
deed it is independent, and, though originally planted 
by English people and ministers, has been much car- 
ried on by American clergymen, — there was a large 
congregation. It is a cruciform building of stone, 
very spacious and airy, and could hold fifteen hundred 
people or more. The clergyman ministers to five 
thousand souls. People of all colors sit, as at St. 
Thomas, quite indiscriminately together. Mr. Allman 
preached extempore, on prayer ; and in the evening 
on the same subject, under a different aspect and with 
a different text. There are monuments commemo- 
rative of the labors of Mr. Hawley, and of Mr. Richard 
Cox, who was here for a time. The Sunday-schools, 
composed both of children and of adult blacks, are 
very large and interesting, and have, besides the 
church, an excellent building for their accommodation. 
Four churches supply the town : the Lutheran, Epis- 
copal, Roman Catholic, and Moravian. 

Jan, 22. — After a ride on the next day through 
some of the most luxuriant spots in the neighborhood 
of the town, I had the opportunity of being present at 
an interesting discussion in the Council of the Island. 
The Governor was present, though not exactly as the 
presiding officer ; but he gave his opinion with great 
freedom. It was proposed to permit the laborers to 
make their annual bargains with their employers at 
such rates as they might agree upon, and not, as now, 
at a fixed rate ; and several other changes were in- 
cluded, all in the interest of the laborers. After a 
rather animated discussion, in which two of the Judges 



JOURNAL. 33 

took part on the side of the laborers, the propositions 
were all rejected, not being acceptable to the planters, 
who were strongly represented in numbers. The 
whole Council were about twenty-four ; and my friend 
and I were the only auditors in the large and handsome 
hall. 

We dined with our friend Mr. Allman, and had the 
pleasure of meeting the Rev. Mr. Dubois, Rector of 
the Church of Friedrichstad at the other end of the 
island. He was educated at Middletown, and is 
canonically a clergyman of the Diocese of Connecticut, 
to which he does honor. 

Jan. 23. — The public schools of the island have 
been permitted to be very much under the charge of 
the Moravians ; but the Government has required the 
erection by the planters of very substantial school- 
houses, which are well furnished with teachers and 
books, — the latter in some cases prepared for the island, 
or for the West Indies, exclusively. We visited one 
of these schools in the country. The phonetic system 
of reading has been unhappily insisted on by the 
Superintendent of the schools, but is now likely to be 
altered ; the results being found to be too small and 
too. easily lost, after the time when, at an early age, 
the services of the children are required on the estates. 
These estates form the subdivision of the country. 
Each has its substantial buildings : the establishment 
of the proprietor, formerly the seat of autocratic 
elegance, and usually spacious and strong ; the habita- 
tions of the manager and others, as well as of the 
laborers, who are very well lodged ; the sugar-works, 
with the tall chimney emitting smoke when they are 



34 JOURNAL. 

boiling the sugar, which also sends abroad a very 
pleasant and healthful fragrance ; the windmill, often 
of stone ; while the fields are all covered with the cane 
at its different stages, — some just planted, some at a 
mighty height and thickness, waiting for the cutlass. 
Returning to the town, I called at the Government- 
House, to pay my respects to his Excellency, who is a 
courteous and intelligent gentleman. 

Jan. 24. — On the following day, we rode fifteen 
miles to Friedrichstad, or West End, the other part of 
St. Croix. The roads are superb ; and it was ludicrous 
to hear complaints that they had been neglected. A 
very large part of the way lies through an avenue of 
cocoa-nut trees. The cabbage palms are mingled with 
these ; and then we have the tamarind, the mango, 
the mahogany, and a large variety of trees known 
only within the tropics, while of our northern vegeta- 
tion there is scarcely a trace or name. The prospect 
of the various estates — some by the sea-side, others iri 
the valleys, all so green and rich — was exquisite to the 
eye. Many of the estates are not in the hands of their 
former proprietors, and many are not profitable ; but 
the negroes have much protection from the laws, and 
appear to form a contented and prosperous peasantry. 
There are no fences and very few walls ; but the fields 
are watched, day and night ; and small stone houses, 
about as large as a tomb, are seen, in which the single 
watchman has shelter. 

Jan. 25. — I saw, on the next day, for the first time, 
a cotton estate. The culture of cotton, to any extent, 
has but lately been introduced into St. Croix. Large 
fields waving with the plant, now in flower, were a 



JOURNAL. 35 

« 

beautiful sight ; and we saw the easy process of the 
gin. The fish-inarket offered to me one of the most 
interesting scenes which I have anywhere beheld. It 
seems as if, in the colors of the tropical fishes, the 
profuseness of creative skill had thrown abroad its 
splendors with pleasure in their mere variety and 
luxuriance. Black, white, brown, red, pink, gray, 
yellow, green, orange, every shade, every kind of 
spot or stripe, are here in wonderful beauty, on these 
little animals drawn up indiscriminately from one 
harbor. 

We took the steamer at five in the afternoon for St. 
Thomas, and arrived before ten. The passage was 
not very rough. As we were going from the steamer 
to the boat which was to land us, an accident occurred, 
which, but for the merciful favor of God, would have 
filled us with the deepest sorrow. A fellow-passenger, 
a lady of much worth, descended the steps, and, on 
placing her foot in the boat, slipped, and in a moment 
went over the side into the water, except as we could 
sustain her from entire immersion. The struggle was 
hard for a moment ; I had her by the hand when she 
fell, and, going with her to the bottom of the boat, kept 
a strong hold upon her, while the boatman and the 
men on the steps helped to raise her, and kept her from 
being hurt between the boat and the steps ; but she 
was heavy, and the boat dipped very low, and 
threatened us all. By the mercy of God, however, 
we succeeded in lifting her in ; and with thankful 
hearts, landed in St. Thomas. 

Jan. 26. — A day was gladly given up to some 
little matters of business, and to rest; as our excursions 



36 JOURNAL. 

in St. Croix had, after all, been rather numerous, and 
absolute repose is occasionally very agreeable in travel. 
The difference between the comparative quietness of 
St. Croix and the incessant gabble of the streets and 
little market-places of St. Thomas was easily felt, and 
did not favor rest. But our lodgings at St. Thomas 
were so comfortable, and the flow of life around us so 
animated, narrow as it was, that the exchange was not 
disagreeable. I formed the acquaintance of a gentle- 
man, who, after living for eighteen years at Para, on 
the Amazon, almost directly under the equator, pro- 
nounces that the most delightful- and healthful climate 
in the world, having never been sick. 

Jan. 27. — The next day proved to be rainy, almost 
throughout ; and a rainy day in St. Thomas is a day 
to be passed within the spacious halls and galleries of 
the hotel, or in the Atheneum, well lined with books, 
if you can reach the spot, but not in the streets. For, 
the successive showers come down, sweeping, sudden, 
overwhelming ; and there is nothing but to take shel- 
ter, as wet clothes may be quite dangerous. The even- 
ing brightened up, and we had an early visit from the 
Rector. 

Jan. 28. — The next day was a bright and cheerful 
Sunday, and not excessively warm. At the English 
Church the congregations were very large. That 
church, a handsome stone edifice, capable of contain- 
ing at least a thousand people, was built through the 
energy and personal toils and sacrifices of our country- 
man, the late Rev. J. J. Brandegee. Coming out for 
his health, he found such a field here that he gave him- 
self up to it for a time with all his powers, and has left 
a noble monument. 



JOURNAL. 



37 



Jan. 29. — Towards the end of the month, there is a 
great concentration of arrivals at St. Thomas, of steam- 
ers from the various parts of the seas : from England, 
from the United States, from Jamaica, from Cuba, 
from Aspinwall, from the Windward Islands, from 
Brazil. A vessel of war from the United States came 
in, under the flag of an Admiral or Commander, and 
anchored so near the town that the sound of the 
salutes was like a heavy bombardment. There was a 
little gathering at the Rector's, this evening, of unin- 
vited friends, to congratulate him on his birthday, such 
being the kindly, but rather troublesome custom, of 
Denmark and the Danish Islands. 

Jan. 30. — The Atheneum, at St. Thomas, is a 
great resource for strangers, and not a little needed : 
as the rides are difficult up the sides of the mountains, 
and then through unmade roads, and the walks still 
more limited, and indeed, except within very narrow 
bounds, impossible, save to the most healthful and 
patient strength. The Atheneum furnishes a few of 
the best periodicals of the English, Danish, German, 
and French languages ; and its books are drawn from 
all these sources. Many an invalid traveller has 
passed hours there, with mental advantage and enter- 
tainment, which might else have glided away in 
lassitude. 

Jan. 31. — The English and French steamers, 
expected, the former on the last day of the month, the 
latter a day earlier, had neither of them arrived on that 
day. We were therefore delayed, as our steamer 
depends on that from England. By the kind invita- 
tion of the Admiral, we dined with him and the two 



38 JOURNAL. 

Captains, of the fleet and of his vessel, on board the 
flag-ship, which is a vessel of fourteen guns. We 
had a very agreeable dinner, and were afterwards 
rowed about the harbor as the twilight came on ; a 
scene of exceeding beauty. 

Feb. 1. — Still another day we lingered ; for the 
fact was that there had been severe weather far on 
the Northern Atlantic, and the steamers had passed 
through it with straining engines. Qur friend, the 
Rector, was visited with one of those little attacks of 
fever, which, in this climate, from time to time, attack 
such a man and make an occasional change of climate 
a great advantage, if not a positive necessity. The 
Atheneum was still a resource ; the handsomer streets 
of the town, though few and small, were visited ; and, 
another of our vessels of war having arrived, the 
American uniform was a frequent sight. 

Feb. 2. — The steamers from England and France 
both arrived in the next night ; and we were early on 
board of the other British steamer, to which the mails 
for the Windward Islands were transferred. Before 
noon, we were dancing upon the blessed .sea, and 
breathing the warm but delicious breezes of the South. 
Leaving St. Thomas behind, we passed along the 
shores of the little neighboring islands of St. John 
and Tortola, and then struck across for St. Chris- 
topher, leaving St. Croix on the right, afar off. The 
night was very warm ; and as all the best cabins were 
occupied by the passengers from England, who had 
the preference, we were shut up in a place which 
would a little reduce a candidate for wrestling honors ; 
but I was surprised to find at midnight that I had 
slept, after all, very quietly. 



JOURNAL. 39 

Feb. 3. — In the morning, I found myself in need of 
our full measure of covering, which, after all, is but 
a sheet, so far as hotels or vessels furnish us. We 
approached and passed the high land of St. Eustatius, 
and soon were in sight of St. Kitts. The interior of 
this island is of stupendous height : but the green fields 
stretched up the side, and beautiful estates came down 
to the shore. A very singular clump of rock and 
earth, which appeared as if it had once been hurled 
from the mountain to the coast, had been, when there 
was a garrison here, its strong seat. The large, dark 
church of the Church of England is by the water. 
The mails and some freight were landed here in boats ; 
and then we passed on, gathering a few more passen- 
gers, till we reached the fine little isle of Nevis, which 
is very near St. Christopher. On the opposite side, 
we saw the rock of Redendo, an island rising straight 
out of the sea, and producing great supplies of guano, 
which our countryman, Dr. Field, aspires to make a 
great source of profit, to himself and the country. In 
the evening we approached Antigua, landed the mails 
and freight, and were detained about an hour. We 
could see very little of the island, except its dark, high 
sides. The little port at which the steamer touches 
is twelve miles from the capital ; and passengers 
had been waiting there desolately from hour to hour 
for two or three days, during the detention of the 
steamers. 

Feb. 4. — On Sunday morning the vessel glided by 
the broken summits of Guadaloupe, and at an early 
hour handed over her mails, without stopping, to a 
vessel from the island, which had been visited by a 



40 JOURNAL. 

most destructive visitation of the cholera. I could not 
credit the very large number of its victims, as given in 
the papers, though bearing the aspect of accurate 
detail. We had a short Morning Prayer and dis- 
course, the service being chiefly read by an English 
clergyman who came on board at Antigua, desiring to 
be present at Dominica at a Confirmation and other 
services on this day. A little after noon, we arrived 
at the harbor and small capital. While the steamer 
waited, the Bishop of Antigua, Dr. Jackson, came off 
in a boat, with great kindness, and gave us the oppor- 
tunity to become acquainted with one whose benev- 
olence of manners and dignified cordiality accord with 
the great respect in which he is held as a bishop and 
pastor. Delicious winds attended us as we thus 
glided all day along these beautiful shores, till, towards 
evening, Martinique was in sight ; and at a later hour 
the hubbub of a mighty concourse of negro boats in a 
harbor, and of embarking and disembarking passen- 
gers and a little freight at a distance from the shore, 
were once more witnessed. The lights of St. Pierre 
were left behind us as midnight came on. 

Feb. 5. — The arrival of the steamer at St. Lucia 
and her departure occurred before daylight ; and 
thenceforth our way was eastward, leaving the shelter 
of the Islands, and taking the waves of the Atlantic to 
Barbadoes. It was a rough and rather disagreeable 
passage ; as there was great difficulty in keeping one's 
legs, even when the head and stomach were steadfast. 
The Archdeacon of Barbadoes, son of the aged and 
absent Bishop, had come on board at St. Lucia, with 
a clergyman of the Diocese ; and we were greatly 



JOUKNAL. 41 

indebted to him for carrying us on our late arrival, 
at ten o'clock, through the shocking confusion of a 
nightly landing at one of these ports. The authorities 
of the steamer might easily produce order and comfort 
for the passengers; but they hand them over to the 
boatmen, who are ill regulated by the police, and 
amidst whose wild, unmeaning clamor an operation, 
not the easiest nor the least hazardous in the world, is 
performed at every disadvantage. Once fairly out of 
the crowd of boats, we rowed delightfully across the 
fine harbor, in which a considerable number of large 
ships were lying; and we rejoiced to lay our heads on 
pillows once more which rested on dry land. 

Feb, 6. — Our first day in Barbadoes was passed 
chiefly within doors, on account of the illness of one of 
us ; but I took a walk of some extent, and was also 
driven along the shore, before dining with a gentleman, 
just out of the town. It extends along the water-side, 
and has a little range of wharves around an inlet. 
Trafalgar Square is the central point of this part of the 
town, towards which the streets converge, and which 
contains a statue of Lord Nelson, and a fine fountain : 
some very busy streets, back from the water, cross 
those which meet here. St. Michael's Church is the 
Cathedral. Then there is St. Mary's Church, and 
St. Paul's, and two or three others of smaller size and 
more recent date. The older churches are surrounded 
by spacious churchyards, but none of them appear as 
if kept up with great regard to its freshness of aspect 
or with much outlay of expense. The " Queen's 
House," occupied by the military Commander, is in a 
fine enclosure of rich trees. I saw in our ride, trees 



42 JOURNAL. 

which, like the banyan, strike their branches into the 
earth, and so multiply their roots and trunks. 

Feb. 7. — Though the air is warm, there seems to 
be a perpetual strong breeze, which more than softens 
the heat. On the second day, we went out to the 
dwelling of our hospitable friend, who had urged us to 
come to Barbadoes, and who placed at our disposal the 
mansion which he was occupying, as tenant, in a 
bachelorlike way. It is one of the best of the old 
provincial residences, exceedingly spacious in every 
direction, and airy, and commanding an extensive 
view of a beautiful country on every side. To reach 
it, being about three miles from Bridgeton, we passed 
by one of the principal roads, and through a most 
populous community : for the homes of the black 
people extend on each side of all these roads, to a con- 
siderable distance from the town. They are the 
simplest wooden cottages, with two rooms ; just a 
shelter, and no more. The roads themselves are 
hewed from the coral rock which composes the island, 
and must have cost great labor in other days. 

Feb. 8. — We spent an entire day in complete rest, 
in our airy and delightful abode, till the hospitalities of 
the evening gathered a few guests. The plains were 
green with the cane, ready to be ground ; while, here 
and there, the crop of the succeeding year was just 
above the soil. The cool wind swept over them ; and 
we were too far removed to hear the sounds or see the 
signs of labor. Perhaps the breezes are less soft than 
at St. Croix ; but they are steady, cheerful, and in- 
vigorating. 

Feb. 9. — Almost every morning brought with it a- 



JOURNAL. 43 

little shower; or, if it failed in the morning, it was 
only to come at a later hour ; but on the ninth of 
February it was so prolonged in the morning as almost 
to threaten the planters, just gathering in their canes, 
and proceeding to melt. It passed off, however, and 
left a beautiful day, in which we visited one of the 
Moravian establishments, of which there are four in the 
island. They have done much good amongst the 
negroes ; and still exercise a happy influence. There 
is usually a large house for the missionaries, a chapel, 
a school ; and they sometimes possess so much prop- 
erty as to have some of the usual appurtenances of a 
sugar estate. 

Feb. 10. — On the day after this, we drove some ten 
miles to the residence of a gentleman, the President of 
the Council, who had invited us to spend the day at 
his beautiful place. Its position is elevated, — almost 
the highest in the island ; and around the house he has 
placed the loveliest flowers of the climate, its variety 
of interesting trees, an almost English lawn, and an 
orchard of Barbadian fruits, where the shaddock, a kind 
of sour orange, hangs over you with threatening 
weight and a golden hue. The family were delight- 
fully hospitable, intelligent, and kind ; so that our day 
was to be remembered as passed on one of the bright- 
est spots of the whole earth. Between breakfast and 
dinner we rode a few miles to Haskleston Cliff, near 
the eastern shore of the island ; where, from a height 
of nine hundred feet of almost perpendicular descent, 
we saw, at the distance of perhaps half a mile, the 
magnificent Atlantic break on the shore. Then we 
went on to St. John's Church, which stands on a con- 



44 JOURNAL. 

tinuation of the same cliff, a mile or two beyond, and 
commands a very similar view from the church and 
churchyard. Codrington College is just below the 
cliff, near the sea-side. Our host for the day, as we 
returned to his home, took us into his sugar-works, 
which were in actual operation ; and we saw the 
process, from the submission of the cane to the grind- 
ing mills, on to the rich product packed in the hogs- 
heads. Every estate has its stone windmill, its works 
for boiling, its storehouses and other buildings, form- 
ing a cluster, which, from a little distance, appears 
like a village; and then the whole island, almost 
every rood cultivated, is dotted with these hamlets ; 
not a fence, wall, or hedge being seen, except about 
mansions like that in which we are guests, and to which 
we returned in the evening. 

Feb. 11. — The following day was the Lord's Day, 
which it was a great happiness to spend in a Christian 
land, in English churches. We rode in the morning 
about seven miles to St. George's Church, the Rector 
of which, the Rev. Mr. Cummins, is a man more than 
seventy years old, and altogether blind ; but recites the 
prayers, chants alternately with the choir the inter- 
mediate chants, and even recited the Gospel, leaving 
the rest of the service to his Curate, the Rev. Mr. 
Beckles, son of the Bishop of Sierra Leone. The 
part of the Rector in the Service was touching, as he 
spoke with much feeling ; and all were struck when he 
read in the Gospel for the day the supplication of the 
blind man, that he might receive his sight. In the 
afternoon, at a smaller distance from home, we attended 
the Evening Service at St. Matthew's Church. Only 



JOURNAL. 45 

eight white persons were present: the black hearers 
might have been a hundred. This was, of course, 
chiefly on account of the general habit of attending the 
Morning Service only ; but the preponderance of the 
colored classes must be great in almost all churches. 
There seems to be no very definite separation in the 
seats : at least, the body of the church, including the 
pews usually most valued, is occupied by the black 
people, just as by the white: Mr. Clinckett is the 
Rector of St. Matthew's. The churches of the island 
have outside a great resemblance ; Gothic, airy, with 
or without towers ; but the stone of which they are 
built, as with houses, becomes dark and discolored. 
There is usually a building for schools, the lower 
story of which is arched and open, for the horses and 
carriages of the families that come. In our long 
drives we were always much struck with the immense 
labor which has dug these excellent roads through the 
rock. On that day it was very charming to see 
the laborers, to a great extent, dressed in their best 
clothes ; the men much like gentlemen, the women 
with all the flow of white handkerchiefs, and gowns of 
spotless cleanness. Here and there, however, at the 
humble houses, a boy appeared as he came into the 
world. We reached home just as a decided rain came 
on. Thanks for a day of mercies ! 

Feb. 12. — On the succeeding day there was rain, — 
enough to prevent a contemplated excursion ; and in 
fact, from its irregular and broken occurrence to keep 
us in the house, where, happily, there was room for 
much exercise. Any exuberance of rain is dreaded 
by the planters, with whom the question of profit and 



46 JOURNAL. 

loss from their estates, turns often upon a delicate 
and fluctuating margin. Most of the estates, though 
yielding well, and assiduously cultivated, are embar- 
rassed with advances, made either for their purchase, 
or in unfavorable years, or in the confident hope of 
favorable ones, inducing too much expenditure. Still, 
I think that there must be on the whole a very fine 
average gain to the owners, in return for the labor and 
capital employed through any considerable succession 
of years. 

Feb. 13. — A similar day followed, with a strong 
wind day and night. We walked out a little way, 
but did not venture to take a drive. One of the 
island clergy, however, whom I had not yet seen, 
called in the course of the day. The Commissioners 
from Canada, who are here for the purpose of pro- 
moting intercolonial trade, were on this day entertained 
by the merchants at a great public dinner. There 
was not, I think, much disposition to enter into specific 
engagements. 

Feb. 14. — We had now arrived at the beginning of 
Lent ; and Ash Wednesday, a cold February day at 
home, saw us in the spacious cathedral at Bridgeton, 
with the breezes sweeping through all the windows, 
doors, and galleries, except when these were partly 
closed to shut out short and slight showers. The 
Cathedral is a plain building, but so large as to contain 
two thousand persons ; and is filled and surrounded 
with monuments, the oldest dated in 1665. Although 
there was no music, the Service was long, including the 
Commination, which I had never heard before. The 
congregation was pretty large, but did not embrace 



JOUENAL. 47 

many gentlemen, nor indeed many white persons. 
We spent the remainder of the day at the house of a 
friend who had taken us to church. Opposite to this 
house is Bishop's Court, the residence of Bishop Parry, 
now an old man, infirm, and in England. The house 
was deeply embosomed in trees. In compliance with 
the general custom, I called with a friend on the 
Governor, Mr. Walker; and as he was somewhat 
an invalid, we were courteously received in his 
chamber. 

Feb. 15. — A ride on the following day took us to a 
picturesque region. As we ascended the rather hilly 
land, at some distance in the rear of our residence, a 
splendid view of the sea along the western coast of the 
island, shining in the light of the declining sun, was 
opened. Pausing a moment at a little school, which 
was closing with the Evening Hymn, pealed out by a 
company of black children, under a black preceptor of 
the English Church, we proceeded into a more rocky 
scene than we had yet witnessed in Barbadoes. The 
hills were perforated with frequent caves, amidst the 
thick foliage. Immense fragments of the coralline 
rocks lay scattered on all sides, with wild ravines be- 
tween them, while by the roadside the breadfruit-tree 
or the mango might be spreading its grand shade of 
he deepest green. A copious spring issues from these 
wilds ; and, rushing through an iron outlet, fills the 
pails of the negroes from all the region around, and 
pours on to water many a spot below. We returned, 
delighted with this little excursion. 

Feb. 16. — The cool wind swept all the while over 
the island. When, on the next evening, we drove in a 



48 JOURNAL. 

different direction to return the visit of a worthy 
clergyman, it was almost chilly for one of our party, 
who was thinly dressed. An ascent of a few hundred 
feet considerably varies the temperature ; but in Bar- 
badoes it is never below 68. We heard much, of 
course, in all quarters, of the proceeds of estates, the 
pay of the laborers, the prospects of the planters, the 
improvement of the whole system of society, as well as 
the plans of individuals. A gentleman dined with us 
this evening, whose eagerness and anxiety were very 
copiously and rapidly expressed in a tide of argument 
that could not be interrupted. 

Feb. 17. — The negroes work, on Saturday, only 
for themselves, unless they choose otherwise. Thus 
the windmills rest their broad arms ; and all along the 
road appear groups of people walking, talking, stretched 
on the ground, or wandering at will. Others, espe- 
cially the women, carry fruit and other articles of their 
own to the town for sale. There seems no pause in 
the toil of the port, which was now just beginning to 
be urgent, as the sugar began to be brought in for 
shipping. The city of Bridgeton contains, on its out- 
skirts, many really handsome houses, the abodes of 
real or apparent affluence. They are all but two 
stories, if not merely one, in height, with thick stone 
walls, covered with a cement of light color ; but owe 
much of their pleasantness to the trees amidst which 
they stand, usually with high walls in front. But 
beyond these houses, the suburbs, as inhabited by the 
Africans, are the scenes of the slightest wants and th< 
fewest comforts which home can be supposed to offei 
It is only to be said that there was no direct appeal 
ance of vice or intemperance. 



JOURNAL. 49 

Feb. 18. — On the Lord's Day we went in to attend 
the Service at the Cathedral, and to receive the Holy 
Communion, which is there administered weekly. 
The Service was a little more musical than is usual in 
parish churches ; but not much : and the music, excel- 
lent as it was, had the great merit of being voluntary 
and universal. The Rector of the parish preached, 
and, with the assistance of one Curate, performed the 
whole Service, which occupied two hours and a half of 
almost uninterrupted speaking, in a very large build- 
ing, which will contain two thousand persons, and was 
well filled on that day. He has been at his post 
almost a quarter of a century ; and is fresh and 
youthful. We rode in the afternoon to a chapel about 
four miles from our abode ; but unfortunately mistook 
the hour of Service, which was not till the evening. 
After a little visit to the Curate and his family, we 
returned, and read the Evening Prayer together in 
our chamber. 

Feb. 19. — It is remarkable that Barbadoes, peopled 
and tilled to the utmost inch, should be distinguished 
for the cheapness of its market. Many articles can be 
purchased there for half their value in the United 
States. No spot, I suspect, where the English tongue 
is spoken, would furnish a more advantageous place 
for economical living, in the same proportion to social 
demands ; at least, if we regard only the lesser ex- 
penses. The best houses, though very airy and spacious 
and strong, are plain in ornament and furniture. Car- 
pets the climate excludes, as all over the West Indies. 
I saw almost nothing in any of the islands of insects 
which are popularly dreaded by strangers ; and in 



50 JOURNAL. 

Barbadoes, I might say, literally nothing, beyond a 
few mosquitoes. 

Feb. 20. — After a peaceful sojourn in the mansion 
of our hospitable friend, whose family were in England, 
and who had himself to leave us two days before for 
Tobago, we were kindly made the guests for a couple 
of days of one of the principal clergy of the island. 
He was for the time officiating at a country curacy, in 
the absence of the minister for health. The house was 
exceedingly comfortable and the situation perfectly 
rural. It was high; and the strong and incessant 
wind swept over it with a cool and healthful sway. 
We were indebted to its inmates for great enjoyment. 

Feb. 21. — We went on the next day to Codrington 
College. It stands on the eastern shore of the island, 
with the Atlantic half a mile in front, and a hill be- 
hind, crowned with a chapel. There are two solid 
buildings of stone, with a handsome approach through 
an avenue of cocoa-nut trees. The College was 
founded by General Codrington, who bequeathed cer- 
tain estates in the neighborhood for its support, early 
in the last century. The buildings were raised soon 
after ; and have withstood, though not without injury, 
all the great hurricanes. A fine swimming bath, 
which has lately been perfected, is not the least 
attraction of the spot. The College was designed for 
the education of Missionaries to the Africans ; and, 
though long used as almost a mere school for the sons 
of the planters, has been now restored in a great 
degree to its original purpose. Many of the clergy of 
Barbadoes receive their theological training there ; 
and two or three young men are candidates for that 



JOURNAL. 51 

almost fatal post of the Pongas Mission. The property 
of the College yields an income of nearly ten thousand 
dollars, but the number of students does not exceed 
sixteen. 

On our return, we were gladdened by the arrival of 
our first letters from America and from home, after an 
absence of eight weeks. These came from St. Thomas, 
the only point after Havana to which we could con- 
fidently have letters directed, while we knew so little 
of our probable route. We were devoutly thankful 
that our letters, almost a month old, showed that, till 
then, peace and health had been granted to our dear 
friends. 

Feb. 22. — The following day, as usual, was pleas- 
ant ; and in the afternoon we drove to the estate of a 
venerable gentleman, educated at Oxford and at the 
Temple, a barrister and Judge, from whom we had 
received much courtesy. It was not far from the sea ; 
and its owner, though much alone, yet, in his benev- 
olent and philosophical disposition, his love of Nature, 
and his still active powers of intellect, had many 
resources besides the large landscape. As we returned, 
we called at the church and parsonage of one of the 
oldest clergy of the island, whose equally venerable 
lady — for they have lived more than fifty years to- 
gether — is the sister of an eminent prelate in England. 
Their house and church, surrounded by noble trees of 
long growth, with the cool quietness and repose of all 
around, accorded well with the comparative retire- 
ment of the aged and not active, though not infirm 
pastor. 

Three of the clergy of Barbadoes and one of St. 



52 JOURNAL. 

Vincent, formerly a missionary at Pongas, in Africa, 
dined with us in the evening. They all appeared to 
be faithful and excellent men ; and all sustained that 
character without blemish. Each had from four to 
eight miles to drive to his home ; but the roads are 
admirable, and it was moonlight. 

Feb. 23. — We were up in the morning, and in the 
church, at half-past six, for a Lenten service. In the 
forenoon we called at Brighton, the estate with which 
St. Luke's Chapel is connected, — the proprietor having 
given the land for the church, and the church and 
parsonage having been substantially the gift of his 
family, and being now held by his son, who is in Holy 
Orders, and whose place, in his absence, our reverend 
host was supplying. A very aged lady, entirely deaf, 
and her two daughters, one unmarried and one a widow, 
now occupied the fine old mansion, with its noble 
lawn. One of the ladies had been in America, and 
her husband had received some little courtesy from 
my brother ; so that here was a link of connection. 
We then drove into Bridgeton, and were soon settled 
at our former lodgings. 

Feb. 24. — The following clay, after the transaction 
of some little business, was passed quietly at home, 
and saw a letter of some length begun and completed. 
How much an invalid, travelling in a climate like 
this, owes of the inactivity that steals upon him to 
diminution of muscular strength, how much to that 
habit of seeking " repose " in all respects, to which he 
has been incessantly exhorted, and how much to the 
influence of the climate itself, it would be difficult to 
decide. All the causes doubtless concur ; but it is 



JOURNAL. 53 

very clear to me that it is better sometimes to be 
roused up from the sway of all of them, and made to 
feel the reach of home, of duties, and of private ties 
and public responsibilities. The whole system is 
awakened and invigorated ; and, at certain times, a 
necessary reaction from a real danger may be the con- 
sequence. 

Feb. 25. — Our lodgings were near St. Mary's 
Church, the oldest in the town. They had the pre- 
posterous custom at this church of ringing a small 
bell, without the cessation of a moment, for three 
quarters of an hour before each service. It is a very 
solid old edifice, with a plain tower and large church- 
yard. The clergyman had a rich voice, a fine into- 
nation without the smallest affectation, and exactly the 
right measure in reading the Service, — a thing so 
unfrequent amongst the English clergy. He preached 
also a very good sermon. After dining with some 
friends of a clerical friend of ours, we went to the 
afternoon Service at the Cathedral, which was very 
well attended, although there is a third in the evening, 
when the other churches are open. The Assistant 
Minister preached, and, with assistance, performed the 
Service. 

Guns fired late in the evening signified to us the 
arrival of the steamer, which was to carry us away 
from this island where we had been permitted so 
delightful a sojourn of three weeks, under God's bless- 
ing and protection. 

Feb. 26. — Early in the morning we were again on 
board of the same steamer which had brought us from 
St. Thomas. The return voyage is usually shorter, 



54 JOURNAL. 

and the passage money is less. We ran across to St. 
Lucia on a summer sea, where before we had been 
considerably tossed, and this part of our voyage was 
accomplished in little more than half the former time. 
The coast of St. Lucia, from afar, presents a strangely 
bold, volcanic outline ; but as you approach it, two 
remarkable mountains, near the shore, known as the 
" Sugar Loaves," stand out with an unique aspect. 
The town is insignificant; and we did not reach it till 
after dark ; but seemed to linger some time, and then 
passed on towards Martinique. 

These steamers are manned by Africans. Forty of 
them pulled at the ropes for drawing up the boats, to 
the measure of a violin. I saw one in irons, fastened 
to the main chain all day, and confined to bread and 
water. 

Feb. 27. — We were at Martinique at too early an 
hour to distinguish the objects that shimmered in the 
white moonlight ; and reached Dominica before the 
day was much advanced. The waters were smooth ; 
and we were soon gliding along the shore of Guada- 
lope, which we approached very near and saw to 
advantage. The green valleys, as usual, stretch up 
towards the hills, which here are hardly so bold as at 
St. Lucia, and elsewhere in the islands. The town 
has a shabby look, but the barracks and fort seemed 
extensive. We saw Montserrat very fully, and in the 
evening arrived at Antigua, where the little harbor 
was very picturesque at that shadowy hour. 

Feb. 28. — Before morning we touched at St. Kitts ; 
and so glided on easily across towards St. Thomas. 
As evening drew on, squalls and rain set in, though 






JOURNAL. 55 

not with violence ; so that we entered the harbor of 
St. Thomas at the expected hour of nine, but in very 
thick and rather boisterous weather. There was no 
communication with the shore that night ; and we had 
the enjoyment which many a traveller understands, of 
a quiet sleep in a berth untossed by the waves, while 
the winds are heard with their rude roar outside of the 
boat. 

March 1. — At an early hour we landed, by boat, 
notwithstanding the continuance of the rain, which 
lasted all day and all night, with more or less violence 
of wind. For our own sake, we could not be sorry 
that the French steamer, on whose movements we 
depended, did not arrive during the day, so that we 
passed the stormy night on shore. Though, in Bar- 
badoes, some slight showers wer^ a daily thing, all the 
rain that fell there in three weeks would not, I should 
think, have balanced the torrent which in one hour 
washed the streets of St. Thomas clean. The Bishop 
of the Diocese was expected from Tortola, in a small 
boat ; but I hoped that, though habitually very punct- 
ual, he would not attempt to fulfil that appointment 
to the letter. 

March 2. — In fact, the Bishop did not come; and 
the storm did continue far into the following day. 
Then, however, he came ; and the French steamer, for 
which we were waiting, came about the same time. 
So, after a brief interview with him, we embarked in 
the Caraibe, for Cape Haytien, on her route to St. 
Jago de Cuba and Jamaica. The steamer did not 
unmoor till a late hour in the evening ; but we dined 
on board, and were introduced to those meals in which 



56 JOURNAL. 

the French so much excel. Whatever else may be 
deficient, their regard for the little conveniences of the 
traveller, their tasteful and most palatable cookery, 
their cool wines and lemonades, make one grateful and 
contented. 

March 3. — After an easy night we found ourselves 
in the harbor of Porto Rico once more, and the 
steamer lay there through much of the forenoon. The 
port appeared alive with shipping ; but the town was 
not noisy. The tall houses looked down upon the 
bay, from their rear windows, without giving token of 
their inhabitants. Spain, in her provincial dignity and 
wealth, seemed to be reposing here. We found the 
sea, when we were out again, somewhat rough, and as 
our vessel had no side-wheels, she had the disagreea- 
ble rolling motion wj^ich prevents all walking on the 
deck. Thus we crossed the passage between Porto 
Pico and St. Domingo. Four Pomish priests, bound 
to Port au Prince, were amongst our passengers ; and 
Spanish was spoken about as much as French. We 
w r ere the only persons on board to whom English was 
vernacular, unless it were the stewardess, who was 
from Jamaica. 

March 4. — Towards morning a voice shouted 
" Garcon, garcon!" and none answering, the cry 
was continued with patient and increasing vigor, till 
all the passengers were well aroused. Two or three 
of the state-rooms had been overflowed in consequence 
of a leak that had appeared under the cabin. Baling 
was commenced, which continued, with pumping, 
through the day, more or less ; but the matter w r as 
not serious, especially in the pleasant weather, in 



JOURNAL. 57 

which we glided, along the northern shore of St. 
Domingo. It was Sunday ; and it was exceedingly 
difficult to secure even the semblance of a solitary 
place for our devotions, as the state-rooms include four 
persons. 

March 5. — To our surprise, we were awakened at 
sunrise by the announcement that we were entering 
the harbor of Cape Haytien. There it lay in the 
light of the early morning, as bright a scene as waters 
and shores alone can well constitute. Right and left 
and in front, east, south, and west, rose the wonder- 
ful outline of five mountains. On the left, a long, fair 
plain extended before them, dividing them from the 
bay. On the right, directly back of the town, mount 
up at once the steep heights, covered with jungles, 
though not inaccessible at first. In the bay, a Haytien 
man-of-war, two with the English flag, and our own 
Monongahela, watched the spot where the English 
Bulldog had been blown up by her captain, after 
running her on a reef, in an attempt to destroy a 
Revolutionary vessel. Her mast and spars were 
visible ; and so were the masts of two little vessels 
which she had sunk. As we went ashore, we were 
met by the boat of the Monongahela with the Vice- 
Consul, who, in the absence of the Consul, had been 
requested by the Consul-General at Port au Prince to 
afford us every aid, and who now offered us the apart- 
ments at the Consulate, which we were glad to accept. 
I brought a despatch, containing orders from the 
Admiral at St. Thomas to the commander of the 
Monongahela, which I delivered to the officer of 
the boat ; and we landed at a wharf not free from 
3* 



58 JOURNAL. 

dangerous cavities. I was hurried to the offices of 
the port, to the custom-house, to another office at a 
considerable distance, and finally permitted to rest, 
with the prospect of too long a repose ; for' it was 
stated that the steamer from Port au Prince was in- 
jured, and that we might be detained a week, — even 
a fortnight. We dined with a hospitable merchant, 
partner of the Consul, who undertook the supply of 
our commissariat. Walking through a part of the 
town, the site of which is very extensive, we found it 
a mass of ruins, often covered with vines. The 
pavements, the long streets, the fountains, the foun- 
dations, of the old French city remain. But the 
earthquake of 1842, along with a terrible destruction 
of life, threw down the walls of almost all the houses, 
and largely those of the very spacious Cathedral. 
But more recent ruins, and very wide, are those which 
of late the Revolutionists, defeated and desperate, 
created by burning what they could of the town, in 
sheer wickedness. It was all a sad sight, but wonder- 
fully interesting. 

March 6. — On a bright morning, as indeed every 
morning seemed to be bright, the Captain of the 
Monongahela, a most worthy gentleman, whom I had 
known many years before, but had not since seen, 
came with a boat, to take us off to his vessel, " to 
spend the day." As we were rowed out, we passed 
near the wreck of the Bulldog. Many sailors were 
upon the spars, — the English, after stripping off all that 
is of value, naturally willing also to let the remnant 
disappear, either by being raised or submerged. The 
commander of the Bulldog had somewhat too hastily 



JOURNAL. 59 

taken under his protection a British boat chartered by 
the Revolutionists. This was followed by mutual 
defiances ; and at length he determined to run down 
the Haytien schooner. Either the schooner, without 
his knowledge, had slightly changed her ground, or 
else he was ignorant of the navigation ; for, just 
before reaching his antagonist, he ran firmly upon a 
shoal, where he was at the mercy of the batteries of 
the Africans. He was compelled, as he thought, to 
abandon and explode his vessel, or otherwise, both 
vessel and men would surrender, or perish at last. 
When he was afterwards tried by a court-martial, he 
was severely reprimanded for negligence and the pre- 
mature abandonment of his vessel. We had a delight- 
ful day in our noble American ship, with her worthy 
officers, and a dinner and tea altogether American 
and exceedingly enjoyed. 

March 7. — The military tribunal for the trial of 
the insurgents who had been gleaned up after a Cap- 
tain of our navy had given the chiefs transportation to 
a place of safety, was going on in public, and I w r as 
present through one afternoon of its sessions. This 
was occupied by the plea of the Advocate-General ; 
which was rapid, earnest, and lucid. He wore a 
chapeau bras and official coat, adorned with silver 
trimming. The judges were five : the commanding 
General, a man of sixty or more, with a splendid 
uniform, consisting of a light blue coat, red pantaloons, 
a magnificent hat, and the richest epaulettes ; an 
elderly general in dark blue and gold ; a younger, 
very black ; a fourth, nearly or quite white, very 
young, tall, and rather prepossessing ; and still another, 



60 JOURNAL. 

< 

black, and like his associates in hue, with silver orna- 
ments and epaulettes ; while the rest had gold, and in 
abundance. One of the lawyers wore a black gown of 
plain material. The prisoners, about fifty in number, 
occupied a kind of transept of the building. They 
were well dressed, two or three of them women. The 
Advocate- General withdrew the charge in several 
cases, as not adequately proved ; and the others were 
left in the hands of the judges. The military arrange- 
ments and dresses, except the uniforms of the higher 
officers, were sadly poor, and sometimes resulted in 
utter shabbiness. 

March 8. — I was also present on the following day 
during a part of the defence. The advocate was a 
man of thirty-five, perhaps, with a scholarly look and in 
a black gown. Like the Advocate-General, he spoke 
impressively, distinctly, with much animation of 
gesture, but with perfect dignity and self-possession. 
Amongst the less important prisoners, was a former 
British Consul. 

The old Cathedral was a building of very large 
dimensions, but of not much architectural unity. Its 
walls substantially remain, or have been rebuilt, — a 
white, grand ruin. A large sum had been slowly 
accumulating for its restoration ; but this, with other 
treasures, was seized by the Revolutionists, and is lost. 
Two handsome statues, of St. Peter and St. Paul, 
a gift from Europe, have been placed in their niches 
outside. It will apparently be long before the edifice 
can be even a shelter for worshippers. In the mean 
time the Roman Catholics, the whole mass of the 
people, appeared to have but one small church at their 



JOURNAL. 61 

disposal. Two of their clergy, whom I saw at the 
Court, were decidedly the shabbiest men in the whole 
assembly, ragged even, unshorn and slovenly. The 
Cathedral fronts on the great square, where once were 
the theatre and opera-house and the seats of French 
luxury, right under the shadow of the steep mountain. 
In the centre of the square, as elsewhere, a fountain 
still affords the water of the people, having on the top 
of the pillar the red cap of the French Revolution. 
The market-place is another and similar square towards 
the other end of the town ; but the insurgents burned 
up the buildings. 

March 9. — Our broken-down steamer from Port au 
Prince arrived, and broke down again at the entrance 
of the port. The friend, however, whom we expected, 
came ; and we could but await her return, which 
might be after a delay of but a day or two, or might 
be much longer deferred. A pleasing occasion was 
the baptism of two children of the British Consul, at 
which several officers of the British Navy were present. 
They had almost finished dismantling, exploding, and 
putting out of sight the relics of the Bulldog, which 
Englishmen could not view with much satisfaction. 

March 10. — Not many hours seemed to elapse 
without bringing to light some person, more or less 
connected with our country, or interested in the Prot- 
estant religion. There was a considerable congre- 
gation of Wesleyans, some of whom understood 
English ; but it had now been long without a minister, 
the ministry having been sent from England. At 
different times small settlements of colonists have been 
encouraged; and though the settlement may have been 
broken up, the persons may remain. 



62 JOURNAL. 

There was no other current money than the depre- 
ciated paper issued by the government, of which one 
dollar was but a sixteenth of the dollar in silver. 
Prices, however, were high ; and the laborer obtained 
larger wages than elsewhere in the West Indies. But 
they needed not to labor, unless they chose ; and so, 
substantial, continuous industry was not much known. 
The cultivation of sugar has quite ceased. Coffee is 
brought in from all parts in small quantities ; and 
cocoa, and logwood, and mahogany; and thus Cape 
Haytien has a considerable trade, ruined as it seems. 
As usual in the West Indies, the merchants have their 
stores and houses under the same roof; and the en- 
trance to an elegant parlor or gallery, if not through 
the warehouse, is close by the kitchen, without the 
slightest reference to the principles of fitness and 
beauty. 

March 11. — On Sunday, a mild and rather cool 
day, Divine Service was held in the Chapel occupied 
by the Wesleyans, — the premises including a parsonage 
and school-room within the walls. The services were 
in French ; and except those of Confirmation and Or- 
dination, were performed by the American Missionary 
of the Episcopal Church at Port an Prince, — a black 
gentleman from the United States, who has resided for 
some years in that city. A mulatto gentleman, for- 
merly a Methodist minister at Cape Haytien, received 
Confirmation in the morning, and was admitted in the 
afternoon to the Order of Deacons. Fifty or sixty 
persons were present; but in the afternoon, the quiet- 
ness of the administration of the Holy Communion 
was disturbed by the music and shouts of the persons 



JOURNAL. 63 

who had assembled to witness the adjournment of the 
Court-Martial, not far off. 

March 12. — The following day was marked by a 
stronger wind on the bay. We walked along the 
shore almost to Fort Picolet ; but the gale was too 
much in our faces. Low fortifications, of some earlier 
date, line the shore as you proceed, while the moun- 
tain, dark and tall, draws nearer and nearer till it ter- 
minates at the point where the fort is planted ; and 
beyond is the open sea. Back from the shore, till the 
town is left behind, and indeed afterwards, and towards 
the foot of the mountains, the streets are mostly ruins. 
They are very widely overgrown with the green luxu- 
riance of a tropical vegetation ; but many bare, broken 
walls, many roofless abodes, many spots simply covered 
with scattered stones, tell the story of the earthquake. 
March 13. — I visited on the following forenoon, 
accompanied by my two clerical and colored friends, 
the Haytien steamer of war, Gralatea. She was a 
Confederate vessel, and was recently purchased by 
this government, and had come down to bring the sol- 
diers who guarded the Court-Martial, and to command 
the town during the trial. The commander was a 
Frenchman ; one of the lieutenants, a black man, 
originally from the West Indies ; the other officers all 
white men, and Americans ; and the crew black, and 
generally American. Unusually spacious and airy, 
the ship was also well armed and in good order ; and 
we were received and conducted over it with the usual 
politeness of the navy. 

The military tribunal pronounced the sentence of 
death on twelve wretched prisoners, and proceeded 



64 JOURNAL. 

with the consideration of the less severe penalties. 
It was customary that the execution, in such capital 
cases, should take place within twenty-four hours, and 
it was understood that the President had declined be- 
forehand all appeal to himself; but the day and night 
went by without any marked public sensation, and I 
supposed that there had been delay ; but was informed 
on the following day that six of them had been shot at 
the other end of the town, on the preceding afternoon ; 
the other six were to await the decision of the Presi- 
dent. The poor wretches doomed to die for assassi- 
nation, pillage, and incendiarism, had been marched 
through the street within a few rods of us, amidst the 
lamentations of women ; but I had heard nothing. It 
was, as I gathered from all accounts, a butchery. Re- 
cruits from the country were employed ; they turned 
their heads away ; and two hundred bullets were act- 
ually fired before the six wretches were dead. Their 
bearing was unfeeling and desperate. 

March 14. — North of the town is a house, with a 
garden now partially occupied by a little club of -the 
resident merchants as a place of meeting. It is plainly 
a chateau, or other stately building, of the French days, 
now ruined, except that the elegant walls and columns, 
here and there still standing, declare what once it was. 
A glorious mango-tree grows in the court, and flowers 

O O O ' 

may be plucked in handsome clusters. Farther on, 
towards Fort Picolet, where the mountain draws very 
near to the sea, a little glen is filled by the extensive 
remains of another of these fine old mansions. The 
fortifications along the shore and heights seemed to me 
not beyond the skill of the Haytiens under their Afri- 



JOURNAL. 65 

can governments ; but these buildings are of another 
date. 

The ass is the common beast of burden at Cape 
Haytien, along with the small horse ; but oxen draw- 
also their loads from the country, having the beam of 
the yoke on the head. The fodder of the horses in the 
town is the long grass just cut, and brought in bundles. 
Even to drive through the town in a good carriage 
w r ould be almost out of the question. 

March 15. — I sought out the existing Roman Cath- 
olic church, at the hour of Vespers, that I might see 
the provision for public worship in a city which most 
usually contains 10,000, 12,000, or 15,000 inhabitants, 
all, with few exceptions, of that communion. Since 
the earthquake of 1842, this has been the only place- 
of their worship. It is in the remotest corner of the 
city, in the same part with the Cathedral, but beyond 
it, and could scarcely contain three hundred people. 
Some women were kneeling at their prayers. 

March 16. — A small war-steamer, the Geffrard, 
having come down from Port au Prince to take back 
the Advocate-General and other members of the Mili- 
tary Court, the Vice-Consul sought and obtained per- 
mission for us to go in her as passengers — a privilege 
obtained by a number of other persons. Our friends 
very thoughtfully furnished us with boxes of cold 
provisions and fruit ; and it so befell that of the chairs 
provided for the Court, and now taken back, two were 
allowed us, and enabled us to sit with some comfort. 
Though we were aboard early in the afternoon, the 
vessel did not leave the harbor till dark ; and then we 
bade farewell to the glorious bay and sad, desolate 



66 JOURNAL. 

town, most interesting still in its sorrows. The night 
was beautiful, and we glided along the shores of the 
island without a disagreeable ripple ; but as there 
were no beds or berths to spare, we slept as we could, 
thankful for so little discomfort. 

March 17. — The absence of the usual opportunities 
of perfect repose and of preserving personal cleanliness 
is the great cause of suffering in this kind of travel. 
We were congratulated, and most justly, on the great 
superiority of the accommodations even thus afforded 
by a ship of war to those of the usual lines of small 
steamers. Long before daylight, we found our way 
through the rows of sleepers on the deck, to look for 
the Southern Cross, which was there in all clearness. 
I apprehend, however, that it is only in climates fur- 
ther south by far, where the brilliancy of the northern 
heavens is unknown, that those four or five stars can 
stand forth with their characteristic impressiveness and 
glory. The day was pleasant, and in the afternoon we 
touched at Gonaives. Long, black, sandy hills formed 
the shore along which we had been sailing ; it was on 
our left, and the bright mountain streams of Hayti all 
ran in the other direction, — the clouds borne by the 
northern winds passing beneath the summit. I landed 
at Gonaives, and called on a gentleman, who may be 
safely designated as the chief gentleman of the place, 
the father of a friend at Cape Haytien. He is a very 
wise and intelligent man, enfeebled in health ; and I 
passed with him an hour of very satisfactory conversa- 
tion. The delay of the vessel was much longer ; and 
she finally, in the evening, took a lighter in tow, and 
set out. I slept in a chair, with a boy under my feet, 



JOURNAL. 67 

and myself at the foot of the stairs leading to the little 
cabin. 

March 18. — Weary and jaded, yet thankful for a 
safe and smooth voyage, we entered the Gulf of Port 
au Prince, and approached the city in the middle of 
Sunday forenoon. Its site is extremely low, where it 
lies along the sea-side, but its streets rise steadily be- 
hind for a considerable distance. It had suffered 
most widely from a severe conflagration some eighteen 
months before ; nor is the eye arrested at the entrance 
by any very stately edifices. We, however, enjoyed a 
few hours of absolute delight, when, in the spacious 
precincts of the Consul, we were permitted to wash, 
to eat, to drink, to lie down and to take our rest, for a 
couple of hours. We arrived too late to allow of any 
morning services, and it is not usual to hold any in the 
afternoon. So we performed our offices of devotion at 
home ; and tried to " rest, according to the command- 
ment." 

March 19. — Our first entire day in Port au Prince 
dawned brightly; but within an hour a tremendous 
calamity had begun. The city was on fire. In the 
very heart of one of its wealthiest regions of well- 
stocked warehouses and handsome mansions, the hand 
of the incendiary, as it seemed, threw in the seed of 
destruction. All the morning the land-breeze blew, 
and wafted the raging flame, which swallowed every- 
thing in its path, and widened its path on both sides. 
There was nothing like effective resistance ; generally 
none at all ; goods were removed, but the houses went 
down like stubble. A multitude of wild men and 
women, boys and girls, friends and pillagers, carried 



08 JOURNAL. 

off all to which the owners could not look, and which 
the fire did not too soon ingulf. There were no en- 
gines of any force ; and what was to me most fearful 
of all, if true, it was said that some of the people cut 
the hose of the engines. There was no organization ; 
and, notwithstanding the presence of the President and 
his ten aides-de-camp, in uniform and on horseback, 
there was no real leadership. So the conflagration 
swept out of existence all that broad, best part of the 
town which covered the plain towards the edge of 
the sea ; and, when this was exhausted, the wind also 
lulled, and the dreadful work seemed over. But at 
this crisis all the residents said that when the sea- 
breeze should spring up an hour or two later, it must 
waft the flame back upon its track, and towards other 
parts of the city still uninjured. Was anything then 
done, attempted, proposed, or encouraged ? Nothing ; 
and the whole people waited in silence or in noise the 
coming of the sea-breeze which carried the flame just 
where it was expected, and, having rolled and roared 
over streets and squares, made its path up the hill, and 
in the evening died for lack of fuel. Oh what a mourn- 
ful day for those who were wealthy, and in a few hours 
had not a change of raiment ! What a tremendous 
blow to the city, the nation, all trade, all credit, all 
confidence ! I was told that half the wealth of Port 
au Prince was no more. 

March 20. — The night passed quietly, to the relief 
of many anxious hearts, which trembled lest in the 
depth of night the flames might revive, or some wretch 
might kindle them afresh. In the forenoon, I rode 
with my host, on horseback, through the desolated dis- 



JOURNAL. 69 

trict, picking our way. It extended all along the plain 
to the right from the harbor, and to the foot of the 
higher ground, and a little up the slight ascent, and 
embraced, in general, the best dwellings and the bus- 
iest stores. The buildings were commonly reduced to 
utter ruin ; being constructed with a thin brick wall 
and wooden casing, with an appearance of firmness 
which fire too soon shrivels away. Beyond this region, 
and outside of the town, we came to the Palace, which 
stands apart, and is spacious, but not handsome, and 
only one story high. Still beyond was a fine level 
plain, over which a horse could run with delight, and 
to which, even so far, houseless people had brought 
some of their goods, finding a sleeping-place under the 
open sky. The Cathedral, a large, white edifice, of 
plain architecture, escaped the flames. 

After our return home, the venerated President of 
the Wesleyan Missions in Hayti paid us a visit. He 
had lived at Port au Prince twenty years and more, 
and had never been seriously ill. He speaks, though 
not without Christian hope, yet in a spirit of depres- 
sion, of the island and all its prospects. 

March 21. — The cheerfulness of the sufferers, under 
their great losses, was something altogether surprising, 
and perhaps not to be lasting. We walked on the day 
after through a part of the ruins. President Geffrard 
rode by as we sat in our gallery, followed by two or 
three officers. He was in black, and appears to be 
about sixty years old ; carefully and genteelly dressed, 
and riding a good horse. 

Our friend, the Consul- General, whose guests we 
were, in conjunction with the Consul, at whose house 



70 JOURNAL. 

we were, had just taken for his more peculiar resi- 
dence a house commanding a glorious prospect from 
the heights, but three miles from the city, and almost 
inaccessible, There was no road fit for a carriage, 
scarcely for a cart. A person on horseback ascended 
without any serious difficulty, if his horse were sure- 
footed and obedient. We were expecting much pleas- 
ure from a visit, if we could get there ; but the great 
fire compelled Mr. Peck to open his doors to certain 
ladies who had lost their own roofs and all beside. 
They went out in a carriage, which broke down ; and 
they were compelled to struggle up the mountain on 
foot. 

We had, in the evening, a most welcome rain, which 
quenched the remaining life of the flames. 

March 22. — Another and slighter shower followed 
on the following night. I walked with the African 
Rector across the burned region, and to the spot which 
had been purchased for the site of a church. As usual, 
there was considerable discrepancy of opinion on that 
subject. Afterwards, I went with the Rector to his 
humble abode ; and was glad to find that, though so 
much in danger as to have removed his goods and 
books, which were of great value to him, he had 
brought them all back in safety. There I conferred 
also with a man of remarkable physical powers, and 
fine, benevolent face, who had labored amongst the rude 
mountaineers with very striking success. A gentle- 
man called upon me in the afternoon who two or three 
years since took high literary honors in France, and 
who is a devout Wesleyan Protestant. 

March 23. — On a beautiful morning we drove out 



JOURNAL. 71 

— two ladies, a gentleman, and the driver, in a four- 
wheeled carriage, one of the very few existing at Port 
au Prince — to the country residence of the Consul- 
General. The road ascends considerably, but is not 
very steep ; and, were it kept in order with any labor, 
might easily be safe and comfortable. Gradually we 
had reached the mountain side ; and presently, with a 
slight rise, were amongst a paradise of trees. All was 
tropical, and nothing tropical seemed wanting ; while 
above rose the grand mountain, and in front, beyond 
the desolated town, spread the broad bay to the hori- 
zon. We passed here a delightful day ; and one of the 
most princely attractions of the place were the baths, 
cut in stone and filled by the delicious mountain stream 
which supplies the city. To have bathed there once 
would make the day memorable. When we were set- 
ting out on our return, towards sunset, the carriage 
broke, just as a few days before, when it brought out 
the ladies, fugitives from the fire. We resolutely 
walked home, a distance of three miles ; and as we 
passed, after dark, saw a large number of people on 
their knees in the Cathedral. 

March 24. — Saturday, at Port au Prince, as else- 
where, was the market-day ; and from the early morn- 
ing the several places at which the traffic chiefly goes 
on were crowded with a sea of heads. But as the day 
drew towards a close, we went out to the gate through 
which they were returniftg to the country. It was to 
me one of the most striking sights I ever beheld. By 
hundreds, by thousands, the people passed by, usually 
on asses and mules, or perhaps on horses ; women and 



72 JOURNAL. 

ping straw hats, with turbans flowing back upon the 
air ; or, in the case of the boys, with sleek black legs 
rising and working with the motions of the animals. 
These people seemed cheerful, content, healthful, and 
not idle. They were probably little moved by the 
desolations of the fire. The trading interest, even the 
city population, and the rural masses, are very distinct. 
To me, the scene, so Oriental in many of its aspects, 
was rich in important suggestions. 

March 25. — We found the Lord's Day, as we had 
been told, to be observed in Port au Prince by the ces- 
sation from labor and business beyond the example of 
Roman Catholic cities. The little Protestant congre- 
gation with which we worshipped in a private hall was 
almost entirely composed of persons of color, and was 
a cheering and animated assembly. Most of its mem- 
bers were absent ; some embarking for Great Britain ; 
some left without clothing by the conflagration ; some, 
from the same cause, withdrawn into the country. 
Still, the place was filled ; and had there been more 
room, there would have been more people. 

In the afternoon, coming home from the Sunday- 
school at the home of the Rector, I walked straight 
across the path which, the fire had held from the sea 
to the hill-side. I counted my steps, and found the 
width of this utterly cleared and desolated track to be 
five hundred and fifty paces. 

March 26. — Many of the best persons in Hayti are 
of the class who have come in from the United States 
and from the British Islands, and live in the cities 
industriously. The emigration in bodies, under the 
encouragement of the government, was not generally 



JOUENAL. 73 

happy in its issue. The country population, however, 
remains very distinct ; of vast numbers, and living in 
great simplicity. Among them, some gross African 
superstitions prevail ; and it is not long since eight 
persons, men and women, were shot together at Port 
au Prince for a cannibal use of the remains of a child 
whom they had murdered in sacrifice. 

A friend from Cape Haytien arrived, who on the 
first intelligence, imperfect as it was, of the fire, had 
posted across, by horse and by sail-boat, in two days. 
The absence of roads, and of any means of communi- 
cation in the island, is the great obstacle to its comfort 
and progress. 

March 27. — We visited the Superintendent of the 
Wesleyan Missions, and saw his chapel and school. 
He had been so long a resident at Port au Prince that 
he had made his dwelling tasteful and pleasant, and 
well adapted to the climate. The Chapel is sufficiently 
handsome and attractive, and like the school, was built 
chiefly by Haytien gifts. An expensive attempt to 
light the whole with gas, which indeed was successful 
for a long time, was at length broken up by the alarm 
of the neighbors and the consequent interposition of 
the authorities. 

March 28. — At length, we went to the Romish 
Church, the only one in Port au Prince, and large 
enough to contain probably twelve hundred worship- 
pers. It is w T hite, and low, and plain, and has little 
ornament, or richness of preparation for divine services. 
The psalms, however, were chanted loudly and clearly, 
and the floor was occupied by a multitude of sober 
people, mostly women. 



74 JOURNAL. 

It seems that both last year and this some genteel 
people, in opposition to the express wishes of the Arch- 
bishop, attempted to dispense with some of the strict- 
ness of the celebration of Lent. Both the great fires 
took place in Lent ; and the populace were bitterly re- 
proaching a lady who had proposed a masked ball for 
the middle of Lent, the very time of this great confla- 
gration . 

March 29. — We rode on horseback, after a rainy 
night, — the traces of which were soon gone, — to the 
hospitable country-seat of our Consul-General once 
more, and passed the day in luxurious quiet. Looking 
over the broad bay, we saw a steamer come in, — the 
iong-expected steamer from New York ; and, on our 
return to the town, found letters and papers from home, 
and from several friends, with, God be thanked, no ill 
intelligence. 

By the Haytien Roman Catholics, the Thursday of 
Passion Week is treated as a holy day and fast, much 
on the same level with the Friday, and no business is 
done. The flags are at half-mast, and the church is 
filled. 

A few ugly images of Judas were constructed on 
that day, or on Good-Friday, to be destroyed when 
the fast should cease. There is a strict abstinence 
from labor and trade on Good-Friday, and it seemed 
difficult to procure articles even for Easter, unless with 
considerable forethought. We attended the Protes- 
tant Episcopal Service, where nine persons were con- 
firmed, all of them people of color. 

March 30. — The difficulties of religious services in 
such a climate are greater than would have been ap- 



JOURNAL. 75 

prehended, before experience. For the day is, for 
such purposes, greatly shortened by the necessity of 
withdrawing from it all its middle hours. Then the 
evening is no time to stumble about a dark city, with 
its rough pavements and unclean gutters ; and in the 
afternoon, the hours of dinner seem as different as from 
one to seven. The comparative silence of the city, 
however, favored the meditations of the day of the 
Crucifixion. 

March 31. — It was rather gratifying, on Easter 
Eve, to hear the songs of persons who were traversing 
the streets in a little company. I could not tell their 
import, or whether they were those of Roman Catho- 
lics or Wesleyans ; but they were evidently religious. 
Other little strains at an earlier hour I heard in my 
neighborhood, which were plainly of Methodist ori- 
gin. In the forenoon, with some firing of guns, and 
destruction of the images of Judas, the fast ceased, but 
no business was still done in the ordinary way. 

April 1. — Easter Day was bright and pleasant, and 
kept as a high holiday. When the President set out 
from his residence for the Cathedral, when he arrived, 
and when he reached home again, there were peals 
of artillery, most superfluous and inappropriate. The 
Episcopalian congregation met in their hall ; and a 
Deacon and Priest were ordained, and the Holy Com- 
munion celebrated in great peace. In the evening it 
rained very violently, and the streets were a flood. 
The Wesleyan congregation, which had assembled for 
Service, were surprised by the storm, and disagreeably 
detained till a late hour. There were wild rumors of 
intended insurrection and massacre, which we did not 
know at the time. 



76 JOURNAL. 

April 2. — The day after Easter was kept as the fete 
of Petion, the mild President who succeeded Chris- 
tophe. His tomb stands in front of the residence of the 
President. It would seem to be the wish of the Gov- 
ernment to keep his example before the people as the 
national policy. News came of an outbreak, no one 
knew how important, in the neighborhood of Go- 
naives ; and a frigate was sent down with two hun- 
dred soldiers. In the evening the United States ship 
Bienville arrived from St. Thomas. 

April 3. — The rainy season at Port au Prince had 
so far begun, late in March, that almost every evening 
there was a shower, or a longer fall of rain, attended 
sometimes with lightning and thunder. Then the 
streets and mountain-paths w r ere flooded, were rapidly 
dried, and kept very clean. The rains very much 
tempered the heat, which, indeed, except just in the 
noontide hours,. was not very severe, but which, except 
for the breezes and the rains, might have been debili- 
tating. 

April 4. — At the Court of Hayti, there are no for- 
eign ministers or charge* d'affaires. France w r as rep- 
resented by a nobleman who was Consul-General ; 
Great Britain, by a gentleman of noble family in the 
same character ; and our own government, by Pro- 
fessor Peck, formerly of Oberlin College, in the same 
office. The colored clergyman of the Episcopal 
Church is, appropriately enough, Consul for the little 
Republic of Liberia, — as he is not likely to be thus 
burdened with secular business, and may secure some 
slight privileges. 

April 5. — The occurrence of strange or mischievous 



JOURNAL. 77 

insects and reptiles in the West Indies is by no means 
what is often supposed and represented. We had seen 
but one scorpion ; cockroaches were far from abun- 
dant ; no centipede had crossed our path ; some enor- 
mous but very harmless spiders appeared at Cape Hay- 
tien ; but the mosquitoes, though numerous at Port au 
Prince, w T ere by no means large or very venomous. 
Rats were bold ; but we saw no bats, or snakes. 

April 6. — Ascending one day with slow steps the 
steepest of the streets which lead from the water out 
of the town, I turned to survey w T ith great pleasure 
the extensive view. The rains had scooped the road 
till it was like a scoured floor. At the foot of the hill 
and down the descent, the buildings along which were 
poor enough, stretched that part of the city which had 
survived the fire. Then came the ten or twelve 
steamers and ships in the harbor. Then, the bright 
sheet of waters stretched to the setting sun, which was 
going down cloudless and in all its crimson glory. 
Directly in front, but many miles distant, the great 
island of Gonaives rears itself; while, close upon our 
left hand, behind the town, the hills are like a wall, 
and on the right they bound the plain at a greater dis- 
tance. Cheerfulness was added to the picture by the 
many little boats which, loaded with bananas, sugar- 
cane, and other articles of popular demand, and spread- 
ing their sails to the light wind, came fleetly to the 
shore, ready for the market of the next day. 

April 7. — The city of Port au Prince, before the 

destructive conflagration, though not a very handsome 

town, yet must have contained a far larger proportion 

than now of good buildings. Almost all the houses 
4 * 



78 JOURNAL. 

have galleries extending over the street, forming walks 
for the passengers below, and rooms or corridors 
above. The structures are not heavy, on account of 
earthquakes ; and indeed, most of the buildings appear 
very slight, poor, and precarious, though the rents are 
extremely heavy. Scarcely one has more than two 
stories. The grand object, of course, is airiness. 

April 8. — The indifference of Europeans and Amer- 
icans, residing in foreign towns for purposes of trade, 
as to attendance on public worship, under circum- 
stances which demand any real and cordial interest, is 
but too common, but too general, of course with bright 
exceptions. They will sometimes give liberal sums, at 
least to a moderate extent ; but personally, their treas- 
ure and* their heart are elsewhere. They come for 
gain ; and, having acquired it, they go as they come. 
So the missionary can place small reliance upon them, 
except in a very collateral way. 

April 9. — The weariness which belongs to travel in 
a hot climate is not all to be attributed to merely 
physical exertion. For, the task of conversation with 
strangers, the draft on the attention, and on all the 
powers if the subjects are weighty, especially if there 
be a necessity of understanding and using a foreign 
language, and especially, also, if there be any weakness 
in the organs of speech, all make a day of visits and 
discussions oftentimes the most exhausting of all. 

April 10. — A visit by invitation to another of our 
national vessels was an agreeable incident and inter- 
ruption. She was to sail on the next day for St. 
Thomas, from whence she had come. Having been 
originally a merchant steamer, with accommodations 



JOURNAL. 79 

on a handsome scale, she was altogether such a ship as 
sailors could inhabit with the amplest arrangements 
for their health and comfort. Our party embraced 
the Consular Agents of Great Britain, Spain, and the 
United States, with several gentlemen and ladies. 
The officers were most courteous ; and the little lunch 
was so American as to be delightful. 

April 11. — On the next day the war-steamer left ; 
and quite a blank, partly of loneliness, partly of repose, 
remained behind. The weather was now becoming, 
from day to day, more sultry ; and in the middle hours 
of the day, in the heat of the sunshine was, indeed, 
excessive ; and yet, with the fine breeze and the open 
construction of the houses, there was no weather so 
hard to be borne as our American summers in the 
largest cities. Such, at least, was my experience, guest 
Is a was in the airiest house in Port au Prince, and 
seldom leaving its galleries. 

April 12. — The mixture of races and colors, in the 
scenes of business, created no apparent embarrassment 
or sensation. In fact, the white men are the unusual 
exceptions. Those of them who had been settled in 
Hayti permanently, appear not to have hesitated to 
mingle their blood with that of the native race in its 
more diluted forms. I saw most respectable gentle- 
men, from Europe and the United States, whose wives 
were of African descent, though sometimes to detect 
this required almost a physiological examination. In 
one or two instances, I could not believe it, except on 
other proof than the eye. 

April 13. — Intelligent people in Hayti seemed ill 
satisfied with the Government, though not desirous of 



80 JOURNAL. 

change, in their ignorance as to the possible result. 
Everything, indeed, is required of the Government ; 
everything is laid at its door. The Constitution leads 
to this, as the term of the Presidency is for life, and 
the President originates all legislation. The very 
large salary of forty thousand dollars, with an addi- 
tional sum for special expenses, introduces an invid- 
ious element into the view of that high office, besides 
really affording opportunities of corrupting influences. 

April 14. — The magnificent sunset of the West In- 
dies was daily witnessed in its glory from the airy gal- 
leries of the house in which we were inmates. It is 
almost always clear in the west, though the clouds in 
which hangs the nightly rain are behind us along the 
mountain. The bay, with the vessels not very nu- 
merous, flashes below in the golden light, as the great 
orb grows more and more distinct to the eye, able to 
bear better its declining beams. At length, in its full 
roundness it approaches, it touches the horizon ; there 
is a cry for watches to note the instant of the contact 
and the length of the passage ; and while you look a 
moment longer w 7 ith dazzled vision, he is gone. 

April 15. — Divine Service in French was performed, 
more or less, in the several assemblies for Protestant 
worship, of which there were five in Port au Prince. 
In the morning I preached from Genesis xxxviii. 
20-22. In the afternoon I heard a discourse in the Sun- 
day-school from a plain man, of little education, but of 
much fire and energy, and not apparently deficient in 
good sense (the Deacon ordained on Easter Sunday). 
The people seem to sing universally and naturally, in 
a simple way ; and the French is not ill adapted to 



JOURNAL. 81 

that kind of verse which Psalms and ordinary edify- 
ing hymns may demand. There is sometimes a very 
sweet simplicity in its tone. 

April 16. — Another American vessel of war, which 
we had encountered before in these seas, dropped in 
for a day on her return from the Spanish Main, by Ja- 
maica, to the United States. The intelligence of the 
officers of some of these vessels, within their sphere of 
observation, after cruising for many years in different 
parts of the world, is pleasing and rather surprising. 
In the mean time, we were now waiting for the arrival 
of the vessel which may take us, God willing, to New 
York. 

April 17. — A visit to the President of Hayti was 
a matter of respect, which was usually expected from 
foreigners in our position. We called at an appointed 
hour, under the charge of the Consular Agent. He 
received us alone, and conversed with us in French for 
half an hour or twenty minutes, speaking with the ut- 
most distinctness, and readily appropriating to himself 
so much of the conversation, and talking with so much 
apparent frankness, as to place the visitor quite at his 
ease. The palace is large and comfortable, and of one 
story. 

In the afternoon, a ride on horseback over rough 
roads, and with a hard horse, to the home of a gentle- 
man whose three children were baptized, stiffened me 
for a time. 

April 18. — The vessel of war, after a delay of only 
two days, passed on to Cuba and Jamaica, on her 
way to the United States ; and we felt that we would 
gladly run the race with her, were our own steamer at 



82 JOURNAL. 

hand and ready. It seemed almost as if a still rainier 
season were drawing on. The clouds gathered earlier 
in the day, and the evening rain sometimes extended 
far into the night ; there was also more of thunder and 
lightning. 

April 19. — The desired steamer from Jamaica for 
New York came at length ; but did not arrive off Port 
au Prince till so late an hour that Ave were compelled 
to wait till morning in uncertainty. Meanwhile, news 
was brought of a dreadful explosion of one of the 
English steamers at Cuba, laden with chemical arti- 
cles ; the result of which was the utter destruction of 
that steamer, the serious injury of another, the loss of 
some sixty lives, and the annihilation of an immense 
mass of property. 

April 20. — To our deep disappointment, the steamer 
for New York, when she appeared in the morning, 
was filled with passengers, and could not take one 
more. We were obliged to determine on going by a 
sailing-vessel, and happily there was a good opportu- 
nity. Several of the passengers from the steamer 
came ashore ; and while they were with us, a great 
riot arose between the mate of the vessel and others 
on the one side, and the mob on the other. A citizen 
was seized and put in irons on board of the vessel, 
charged with the design of committing some violence. 
On this, the mob seized a sailor of the steamer and 
beat him unmercifully. The accounts were, of course, 
confused ; but it was an unhappy event, on account of 
the excited state of general feeling. 

Those who have followed Bishop Burgess in his 



JOURNAL. 83 

wanderings among the West Indian Islands will be 
interested to follow him to the end. The last date in 
the Journal is April 20th. He might have written 
again on the 21st, but, expecting to sail on that day, 
the trunks had been packed and sent on board the 
vessel. At sunrise on the 22d he embarked ; and on 
the morning of the 23d, while resting on the deck, 
with no warning which he could recognize, and with 
but a few minutes' warning to the single watcher at 
his side, he was called to his heavenly home. It was 
less like death than like a translation. u He walked 
with God ; and he was not : for God took him." 



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